T
he latest residency on Torriano Avenue is bedding in with the slogan Buns, Bites & Bowls. With a background in fine dining and an inventive style that combines flavours from across the globe, their creations are familiar and comforting yet innovative.
Co-founder of catering, events and streetfood company the Food Factory Project, Meliti Bampili Thymara has imaginative plans, including introducing a loyalty card and creating a range of brunch dishes to capture a wider clientele such as bone broth ramen.
The playful notepad menu invites diners to tick their food choices. With a group or feeling particularly hungry? Check the ‘one of everything’ box. In fact, we would highly recommend that option, given we greedily gobble down most items on the list and don’t eat a dud on the evening we visit. Plates are presented with care, each ingredient thoughtfully chosen; here are three not to miss.
Steamed dumplings
These dextrously made parcels of joy sitting in a pool of fiery chilli oil (plans are afoot to bottle this) and dotted with small blobs of Japanese mayo are well-filled with a combo of leek, onion and ginger. The final touch consisting of sliced pickled daikon and cabbage adds balance. One bite or two?
Red curry bolognese
A heap of rich, spicy beef ragu finished with a sprinkling of cheddar and a smattering of homemade Thai gremolata (coriander, basil, garlic, lime and rice vinegar) arrives atop a pile of just-cooked udon noodles: watch out for the mouth-tingling hit of Szechuan pepper. An ingenious version of a classic – slurping expected.
Baos
These fluffy pillows are generously stuffed: there’s a slab of panko-crumbed brined mushroom with hoisin and zingy lime aioli; slow-cooked piquant brisket adorned with a soupçon of fried onions; braised pork belly covered with crushed peanuts; tender fried chicken with lettuce, tomato and bacon crumb, a take on a BLT; and chunks of just-cooked cod coated in super-light tempura topped with thin shavings of bonito flakes (dried, fermented tuna). In two words: 100% yum.
