From celebrity packed restaurants with superstar chefs to Michelin stars and ‘top 50’ – there’s no shortage of heavyweight restaurants in London. But here at UJ, we’ve always been fans of the smaller, humbler restaurants and, as of late, there have been a few that have cropped up under the radar – small but with big credentials. Read on for our favourites.
First up: Curio + TA TA. Although the location may be unremarkable, nestled within a discreet coffee shop in Haggerston on Kingsland Road, it boasts a CV worth travelling for. Helmed by chefs Zijun Meng and Ana Gonçalves, both Viajante and Chiltern Firehouse alum, the menu slants towards their Portuguese and Chinese heritage with a heavy focus on rice. Expect family serves of prawn tartare with egg yolk and tobiko (roe), Iberian pork ribs with black beans and onions and traditional congee (rice porridge). And don’t forget about the rice wine cocktails such as pisco with watermelon and white wine foam, oh yes!
Next, over in Hoxton Square, the guys behind Happiness Forgets (8th in The World’s Best Bars) and Original Sin have spread their wings and gone into the restaurant biz. And, just like both bars, the little neo French bistro, Petit Pois Bistro, boasts an unassuming vibe. 25 seats, a simple menu from breakfast to dinner (think moules marinière, steak frites and duck confit) at an affordable price tag (£30 for three courses). Simple.
But the restaurant that really has our tongues wagging? The Barbary. The second restaurant from the people behind the perennially packed Palomar may be small (it’s a 24-cover Kitchen Bar) but we predict big queues. The head chef is Eyal Jagermann, the former senior sous at The Palomar, and is in charge of the menu, which reflects flavours from the Barbary Coast of North Africa to Jerusalem, with a focus on grilling and baking.
Speaking of The Palomar, Foley’s in Fitzrovia is now open (well, kind of, it’s in soft launch mode) with another ex-sous chef of The Palomar in charge of its menu (with help from Fraser Bashford, the ex-junior sous from Dabbous). Get in quick, we’ve heard great things so far…
