THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
After great success in St. Petersburg, Anna Dolgushina and Madina Kazhimova have opened a delightful, Mediterranean inspired restaurant smack in the center of London. In these troubled times, bringing the world together in such a positive way is very welcome indeed!
The simple, minimalist dining room is centered around an open kitchen, adding a cozy, homey feel to the wood, exposed brick, terracotta and rattan chairs that recall The Med. On a cold winter's night, the open fire grill thawed me out quickly and a Tangerine Cardamom Reviver (£13.50) brought me to my shivering senses. The two women have made cocktails an integral part of the menu and happily so. The gin-based drink was a refreshing blend of sweet, sour and booze.
Head Chef Nikos Kontongiannatos has created an inventive menu that is just the right size. There's enough variation to please most but not so much that it's impossible to decide what to eat. Most of the dishes are grill based. The art of grilling is all about the char, the one element that was disappointingly missing from the dishes we sampled. That being said, everything was cooked beautifully and served artfully.
Choux buns with chicken liver pâté and pickled sultanas (£9.50 for 2) were an absolute delight. The refrigerated pastry lost its crisp texture but the pâté was perfection. Creamy, light, packed with flavor and complimented by the acid kick of fruit. I will be serving these at my next cocktail party!
Halloumi (£15.50) was the one ingredient that had a bit of much appreciated char. With truffle, honey and grapes, the cheese was elevated to something refined and luxurious. Toulouse sausage (£11.50) was also presented as a fine-dining dish with parsnip puree, apple gel and onion jam turning commonplace into art and simple to delectable.
Our mains were both excellent and very different. Scallops with mashed potato, garden peas and truffle (£32) was a lesson in simplicity. The flavors worked very well together, balanced sweet with savory and allowed the perfectly cooked, slightly translucent shellfish to shine. Monkfish (£25) was a total flavor bomb. Clams and their brine mixed with nduja created a gorgeous broth to be slurped up with fregola pasta. The fish was tender and juicy.
A glass of 2014 Aglianico L'Archetipo Salento (£13) was a treat. The “Barolo of the south” is not fruit forward but has a fine balance of pepper, tobacco, dark fruit and tannin. A pleasure to drink.
Baked Alaska (£12.50) or rather, “Torched Alaska” had the lovely bitter taste of burnt sugar but lost the crunch of baked meringue. Earl Grey ice cream was an inspired choice. A chocolate éclair with raspberries and miso caramel (£10) had everything a dessert could want: pastry, creamy chocolate, fruit and a touch of salt. Lovely!
Service was excellent. Will and his colleague were friendly, competent and timed our meal perfectly.
Firebird is offering a 5 course tasting menu on Christmas Eve, featuring foie gras choux buns, venison with quince and chocolate sauce and poached mulled wine pears with chocolate cream and spicy gingerbread ice-cream. That jingles my bells!
