We visit Brat restaurant, the first solo venture from chef Tomos Parry, in Shoreditch.
Tomos Parry, most recently at Kitty Fisher’s in Mayfair, has opened his first solo restaurant in Shoreditch, and what a hit it is.
Brat, apparently named after an old colloquial word for turbot, specialises in Basque food with a nod to Tomos’s Welsh heritage.
The centre stage at Brat is the wood fire oven where all the action takes place in full view.
Wood-fire grilled bread drizzled with olive oil is as simple as it is delicious, but where the wood oven really comes through is with the main focus of the menu – a 1.2kg slow-cooked turbot to share.
The turbot arrives with a glistening char on the skin and is meaty yet wonderfully delicate to taste.
If turbot isn’t your thing, then you can opt for the Herdwick Lamb, roast duck, beef chop or John Dory, all cooked on the wood-fire oven.
Starters include an excellent beef tartare, cockles with liver sauce, and Spider Crab with cabbage and fennel.
The joy of the food here is that Tomos takes excellent quality ingredients and lets them shine on their own.
Everything seems so simple, but tastes anything but.
The space was once a pub (with pole dancing) and thankfully they have kept all the redeeming original features that gives the space such character.
The wood-floors and wood-panelled walls makes you think that Brat has been here for years.
Brat feels homely and welcoming – somewhere you would want to linger long into the evening – and it gets the simple formula of good food with good fine and warm service just right.
Brat features in our guide to the best restaurants in Shoreditch.
Brat Restaurants
If you liked this feature on Brat, you might like to read our guide to the best alfresco restaurants in London, the best brunch in London, the best cocktail bars in London or the rooftop bars in London?
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