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London, Reviews

Oklava

Oklava entrance

A foodie friend recommended Oklava. Soon after, I booked a table for lunch with said friend and another equally lovely and equally foodie friend. As the day to eat there approached, the hype got bigger. The expectations and the amount of saliva in my mouth grew in equal measure.

As you arrive, you are greeted with a most unassuming welcome. The restaurant is a small room dominated by grey concrete and grey fixtures, glass and metal, with modern and simplistic décor throughout. Very Shoreditch. And in true Shoreditch style this is a thoroughly relaxed place. The partially exposed kitchen giving out that relaxed vibe like none of the other features does.

Inside Oklava
Oklava's chefs at work

So far so good. But what about the food? The menu is perfect in size – on the small side but with enough promise to keep you changing your mind about what to order, scared you are missing out on the other delicious dishes your stomach won’t be able to hold. The good news is that between the 3 of us we should be able to cover most of the really interesting ones (however, we will have to come back to eat the others, damn it).

Oklava's menu

Oklava’s menu

Well, I can only say they had me at the date butter. From then on, the meal was an endless parade of clever dishes and delicious flavours. Food with soul and lots of love.

Let’s go back to the date butter – not even a dish but just a standard couvert option offered to everyone. For the date butter alone (and the amazing Baharat bread, served warm) I would come back here. After a lot of involuntary satisfied murmurs and positive interjections from the 3 of us, we moved on to the dishes we actually chose.

Baharat bread with Medjool date butter

Baharat bread with Medjool date butter

We started with ‘snacks’, the first one was grilled Haloumi with lemon and London honey. The smoky charred flavour and glistening honey elevate the humble haloumi to a level I hadn’t experienced before.

Grilled Haloumi with honey and lemon

Grilled Haloumi with honey and lemon

Some almost-healthy-sounding courgette, feta and mint fritters followed and they were creamy and crispy at the same time, both light and moorish. Definitely one to repeat.

Courgette, feta and mint fritters

Courgette, feta and mint fritters

A fabulous whipped feta with candied pumpkin on top of chilli crostini came next. What a handsome dish – white creamy feta topped with translucent jewels of sweet pumpkin, with flavours to match. Probably our top choice for ‘snacks’ and also one to repeat.

Whipped feta with candied pumpkin on chilli crostini

Whipped feta with candied pumpkin on chilli crostini

For ‘mains’ (although this is a tapas/small plates kind of place) we ordered the sour cherry pearl barley with crispy kale, yoghurt, chilli butter and sheep’s cheese. This dish is oh-so-good… Even though most of the ingredients are associated with bland super-foods we eat out of guilt, there is nothing bland about this dish. It was sweet and sour, salty and spicy, creamy and crispy and moist. I forgot I was eating pearl barley with kale and felt like I was eating a feast of forbidden foods. This was also one of the top 3 of dishes for the day.

Sour cherry pearl barley with crispy kale

Sour cherry pearl barley with crispy kale

Another huge surprise was the chilli roast cauliflower. A humble not-so-hot vegetable that managed to make it to the top of the leaderboard. The smoky and buttery flavours contrasted beautifully with the freshness of the vinaigrette and red onions and the nuttiness of the pistachios. A little crunch ensured the perfect texture. Who knew cauliflower could provoque such pleasurable sensations?

Chilli roast cauliflower with red onion, parsley and pistachios

Chilli roast cauliflower with red onion, parsley and pistachios

I then spotted the word ‘octopus’ in the menu. If you read my blog posts you probably know by now that octopus would be my death row meal, should I ever indulge in capital punishment crime. So I couldn’t resist the braised octopus flatbread with ricotta, honey, olives, pickled caper shoots and thyme. This was delicious and quite substantial, so if you are looking to fill your boots with one dish, then this could be it. I really liked the dish but have to admit I have eaten better octopus in Portugal, but that is not necessarily a derogatory comment for Oklava’s octopus, just that my standards for octopus are very high (some of the best octopus I’ve had was here).

Octopus flatbread with ricotta, olives, honey, pickled caper shoots and thyme

Octopus flatbread with ricotta, olives, honey, pickled caper shoots and thyme

Another favourite for the day was the crab and green chilli Gözleme and cheese fondue that was a kind of stuffed chapati, wonderfully crispy and buttery. I know cheese and crab sounds like a strange combination and although the restaurant calls it a fondue, I would say it’s more like a cheese sauce. The combination really works.

Crab and green chilli Gözleme & cheese fondue

Crab and green chilli Gözleme & cheese fondue

We also tried the short rib flatbread, which was also lovely and the crispy pomegranate-glazed lamb breast, which was also very nice.

Yes I know, we sound like gluttonous beasts… no shame there I guarantee you. And yes, we could barely walk and had no space for dessert (definitely need another visit!). And we rolled into work with the mental capacity of a goat. I feel not a hint of regret. If anything, I left feeling slightly annoyed that I work so close to this place and hadn’t tried it before. I will be back and it will be soon.

This is what I call a 5 stars place. It is 5 stars not because it produces Michelin-starred food or it houses Damien Hirt’s art suspended from the ceiling, nor it is housed in a 5-star hotel. It is 5 stars because it delivers 5-star quality food in tandem with what it promises to deliver. It is meant to deliver delicious carefully-crafted Turkish food and does exactly that. Not more, not less. Furthermore, it is honest both with respect to what it offers and how much it charges. It is what I call a ‘well worth it’ £50 meal (for one, with wine), and one of the best I have had recently.

Where: Shoreditch, London

Cuisine: Turkish, small plates

Type: Restaurant

Occasion: Lunch or dinner

Price: On the pricey side but good value

Rating: 5 stars

Would I go again? Yes, already booked

 

London, Reviews

Taberna do Mercado

 

Taberna do mercado inside area
Taberna do Mercado inside

As a Portuguese person living in England and working in London I was really excited to hear about Nuno Mendes’s new place in East London. Taberna do Mercado is a little tavern-evoking restaurant serving typical Portuguese food. And for once, it really promised typical Portuguese food and not some adaptation, even though it has been upgraded to a more fine dining level. I had to go try it and soon!

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London, Reviews

Rosa’s Thai Cafe

Rosa's Carnaby Street

Rosa’s Carnaby Street

A friend of mine who lived in the Far East told me that when it comes to Thai food, Rosa’s is not far from what you get in Thailand. Many of the foreign foods we get served in our countries get ‘localised’ (for lack of a better word), so when someone tells you there is Thai food in London that resembles food served in Thailand – you pay attention. Inevitably I had to try it and I have been 3 times since.

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Barrafina menu
London, Reviews

Barrafina

I had read and heard really good things about Barrafina. And it has two major pluses for me: it serves Spanish tapas and it’s in Soho. I LOVE Soho. And I love Spanish tapas too! But my experience with tapas in England has been mixed. To be quite frank, good tapas are in Spain. I think the disappointment with tapas in England stems from two main things: an adulteration of the original to fit the local taste (which is a well-known phenomenon across many foreign cuisines in this country) and a lack of ingredients as they come in those countries – ripened under much more sunshine and considerably higher temperatures throughout the year. The tomatoes here are not the same, the garlic is not the same, the onions, the potatoes, you get the idea. And so the food can’t really taste the same. Especially if we are talking about food that is simple. A lot of the dishes you eat in Spain (and Italy, for example) are prepared with only a handful of ingredients. You can, however, get very close here and there are a few examples in London. Barrafina is undoubtedly one of them. And Barrafina is more than that. It has elevated the humble tapa to something a bit more glitzy and upmarket, and still managed to keep it delicious. Continue Reading

Dishoom menu
London, Reviews

Dishoom

The proposition at Dishoom is different from your typical Indian restaurant or curry house. It defines itself as a Bombay café inspired by the old Irani cafés that were everywhere in Bombay in the 60s. I have never been to Bombay but all I can say is that Dishoom does a pretty good job at evoking what it stands for. It screams colonialism and the décor is eclectic, colourful with lots of attention to detail. On the table, cold metal ‘glasses’ for your drink and thick plates with writing on them set the scene for a unique experience in a relaxed atmosphere.

Then there is the food. As far as Indian food goes, this is right at the top. It is consistently good, emphasis on both words. And the service is also good, relaxed and friendly. Dishoom remains one of my favourite restaurants in London and if there ever was a top 10 list for me, it would definitely be there.

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Grain Store logo
London, Reviews

The Grain Store

The Grain Store has got some hype. And as you go in the words trendy and hip come to mind. In a great location (you have to check the Kings Cross area now!), sitting in beautiful open square with modern lights, this fresh space is carved inside old exposed brick walls and the whole room is decorated with a mix of wood and steel. It’s got a sort of modern canteen feel. The kitchen is exposed and runs across the main area. On one side, some intimate alcoves are just perfect for quiet conversation and we got lucky as that is precisely where we got our table. Continue Reading

Ruby sign from the street
London, Reviews

Ruby

Ruby is a 15m2 room with a huge stove bustling with pans at one end, a wooden counter that runs along the window and three small tables. At lunchtime, it usually has a queue that spills into the street, which is a testimony to the quality of the food. The queue moves fast too because the men that run this place are part of a well-oiled machine, used to serving hundreds of hungry office workers around Shoreditch on a daily basis. You can take away or eat there, but space can be an issue.

Ruby inside

They have a set menu and a handful of dishes that change daily, most of which are pasta, with at least 3 different ones being prepared every day.

Ruby daily menu board

From the set menu the chorizo, roast peppers and rocket sandwich is delicious. The chorizo is sliced diagonally and placed on a hot plate with the roasted peppers to be finished off and warmed before going into a two slices of ciabatta-style bread with the peppers. The chorizo unashamedly oozing orange fat into the soft bread. Not-to-be-missed.

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L'Anima venison dish
London, Reviews

L’Anima

I was excited about trying L’Anima, as it makes big claims about serving good higher-end contemporary Italian food – something that never fails to get me excited. It also boasts about a long list of awards, albeit all pre-2012.

I went there for a Christmas work do so I guess you need to take that into consideration. The experience of mass-production of food from a Christmas set menu is never the same as the free-choice smaller scale event. Nevertheless I think you can still get a view about a place if you eat there and get served by its people.

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London, Reviews

Nopi

I had high expectations for Nopi, after all it is one of the restaurants of the much talked-about chef Yotam Ottolenghi. It had been on my bucket list for a while.

As you arrive, the ambience is relaxed with the clean white walls softened by the mellow lighting. The staff were polite and efficient but not especially warm.

The menu is very interesting and quite short, which is something I like, ‘do less things and do them well’ is my kind of philosophy.

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