Several London restaurateurs have asked me over the past couple of months, with admirable enthusiasm, whether there have been any new, large openings of note. Strangely, there have not. There have been several less expensive makeovers: L’Odeon and Monte’s into Cocoon and Pengelley’s respectively, both disappointing; the re-emergence of what was Dakota into the admirable Ledbury; and the opening of Maze in the Grosvenor Square Marriott, although it is too early to predict what the talented Jason Atherton will deliver.
Instead, and perhaps more interestingly, there have been a series of smaller openings around London which provide the city with the kind of places one has normally associated with Paris or Florence. These places are quite cramped, relatively inexpensive at least by London standards, are driven by their owners’ personal passions and, perhaps most importantly of all, are very good fun.
Initially, two of these restaurants – Santa Maria de Buen Ayre which successfully aims to replicate the parrilla, or barbecue, cooking of Argentina and Glas which wants to do the same for the far more refined cooking of Sweden – may seem to have little in common, separated as their countries of origin are by thousands of kilometres. But in fact they share one major shortcoming – in both places the tables are far too small. This is also, of course, a reflection of how good their food is, but it makes juggling plates, glasses and crockery an integral part of eating at either restaurant.
Santa Maria de Buen Ayre’s desire to be authentic is strikingly obvious. The big open grill is located down the right hand side of the narrow restaurant next to a photograph of a youthful Maradona and a penant from Boca Juniors football club. By the grill are large cuts of meat – steaks, kidneys, sweetbreads, Spanish black pudding and pork and beef sausages – with the chef Cacho Gomez awaiting instructions on how to transform their texture and flavour via the flame, with bowls of chimichurri, Argentina’s traditional barbecue sauce, to add extra spice.
Certainly if you order either of the three parrillada combinations which are served on grills brought to the table there is little room left and the same situation happens at Glas, although for the very opposite of reasons. Glas is the restaurant manifestation of Anna Mosesson and her family who for several years have been converting many across the UK to the charms of delicious Swedish food via her stall at Borough Market and her website, www.scandelicious.com
What Mosesson wants Glas to be is a grazing menu for Swedish food, a deconstruction of the smorgasbord as it were, and certainly in terms of quality and value for money she, and her chef Patric Blomquist, have very quickly achieved this. Three different ways with herring, including one in a vodka and lime marinade, certainly tingled my taste buds as did a chunkier duck liver and pig’s cheek terrine while more substantial dishes included slices of brisket of beef with horseradish and parsley oil, roast monkfish with riesling and bacon, and spiced venison with liquorice jus. There are some interesting vegetarian dishes, too, particularly a combination of baked beetroot, goat’s cheese, walnuts and salad leaves.
Over in the King’s Road, four young Portuguese businessmen have come together to fund Tugga because they believe there is a gap in the London market for a contemporary Portuguese restaurant. And while in design, layout and noise level – particularly in the bar downstairs – Tugga definitely has a modern look and feel, their sensible decision to hire Miguel Castro e Silva as their consultant chef should ensure its culinary authenticity.
Silva is the chef/proprietor of the renowned Bull & Bear in Oporto and, while in Tugga’s first weeks he was facing delays with builders and ovens, there was no hiding his authentic touch with not just the heartier Portuguese ingredients – salt cod, octopus, lamb shank and pork – but also his range of ‘pesticos’ or Portuguese tapas.
Finally, to Mike Lucy, the London restaurateur who in my opinion takes more risks than any other – not because his projects are so daring or capital intensive but because he has chosen to brave the British climate by opening well-sourced and keenly-priced cafés in many of the city’s parks, from Hampstead Heath to Hyde Park and Greenwich.
Lucy has now converted what was opened in the early 1960’s as The Little Chef (for the princely sum of £50,000!) in the heart of Regent’s Park into The Garden Café and at the same time imbued it with a sense of style, service and food that will suit anyone who is walking through this park, whether with children or en route to Lords or the Open Air Theatre nearby.
There is a takeaway service and a café whose extensive but simple menu encompassed potted shrimps, salmon cured in whisky and rosemary, a good range of salads and cheese – and for those summer days when it seems unlikely that the sun will ever emerge, there is also warming shepherd’s pie, grilled field mushrooms on toast and kedgeree.
Santa Maria del Buen Ayre, 50 Broadway Market, E8, 020-7275 9900,
www.buenayre.co.uk, and www.mercadoargentino.com for Argentine produce. Closed Monday.
Glas, 3 Park Street, SE1, 020-7357 6060, www.glasrestaurant.com
Tugga, 312 King’s Road, SW3, 020-7351 0101, www.tugga.com
The Garden Café, Inner Circle, Regent’s Park NW1, www.thegardencafe.co.uk
