• 5
• Best meal I had in London

My partner and I came here for dinner with little expectation and were pleasantly surprised! Despite the unassuming entrance, the interior is elegant and intimate. Once inside, we were greeted by the lovely maître d’ who then offered to take our coats. The entire staff was dressed in black and looked spiffy. Service was courteous and professional throughout. Ordering works a little differently here. The menu is divided into three sections—starters, mains, and desserts, with each having six items. You then take your pick from each category to form your own two- (£31) or three-course (£41.50) meal. While the food may seem heavy on eggs and dairy, they do have a separate vegan menu available upon request, which is more or less a trimmed-down version of the regular one. It only lists the main components of each dish and not much else, yet those alone should suffice to pique your interest. Not exactly sure what to expect, I decided on my three courses and hoped for the best. The first course already had me sold. It was a humble watercress salad, but tasted fresh and had a nice balance of textures and flavors from the other fixings. The showpiece was the sizable chunk of soy curd in the center that cleverly resembled mozzarella. Like its dairy counterpart, it was mild, smooth, and creamy. Ingenious! Second course was some polenta cubes dressed with beets, horseradish, and various other ingredients. I’m probably making it sound horrible; it was just a bit too experimental (in a good way) to be put into words. Again, it was delicious. What really made this dish were the black garlic oil crumbs strewn across the plate. I loved their sweet and savory note and how they melted in the mouth. I’m a huge fan of black garlic, but had never had them like this before and was totally blown away. Onto the third and final course, it was a peanut butter cheesecake with cacao nibs and a dollop of extra dark chocolate mousse. The “cake” was shaped into small tubes, and was as cheesy as it was peanutty. Together with the robust chocolate, every bite was a delight. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal here. The cooking was sophisticated and innovative. The dishes were beautiful to look at and fun to eat. Portions were just the right size. Although it didn't seem like a lot of food at first, we actually left satiated. All things considered, I found the prices very reasonable. If you're looking for an eye-opening dining experience, look no further!