This was the second restaurant I tried with my friend during his visit to london. The restaurant itself has very simple and modern decoration. I can see it is a more restaurant for afterwork, rather than a restaurant for special events, though there was a large group of young professionals, very likely, celebrating a promotion. I enjoyed the relaxing and welcome environment here.
When I booked, since my friend can only speak and read Mandarin, I put note to request whether a Mandarin version of the menu is available.
The host actually did bit of homework and wrote down the chinese words for “starter”, “main” and “dessert” etc in the a-la-carte menus they gave us.
Although it was not much helpful, I really appreciated.
However, we went for the set menu, of course.
Amongst the small set menu, I enjoyed the “Chalk stream trout” very much.
Despite that my friend thought it was too fishy given not familiar to seafood, the trout was very fresh and just cooked.
I liked the very light or almost no seasoning to this dish.
A little bit of tomatoes, a little bit of red radishes and a little bit of crunchy Bulgur wheat were very entertaining.
The source or the base, the only think I might complain, was a bit too watering, which did not add much into the dish.
The second main “Iron Age pork” was boring, because I felt there was not enough thought on it.
The main problem, I believed, was that the taste and texture between pork, peach, onion and potato hash were way too distanced.
It is true that creating difference helps to engage your tongue, but I felt it did not work out in this particular dish.
Overall, it was a restaurant that meets my expectation considering the price and location. It provided young and welcome environment and had fun and entertaining highlights regarding dishes, but also some polish on the cooking might help them go further. To me, I will certainly visit again.
