19th March 2007
All in one, Cocktail - Dinner - Cocktail/Party
Home Bar and Restaurant
This longstanding member of the Shoreditch scene has a restaurant serving a seasonal fusion menu upstairs. With downstairs as a bar/cocktail lounge playing popular house/breaks, serving great drinks.
For my Thursday night dinner at 8, I arrived at 5 past to find the French team sitting in the reception on lush leather couches. They were drinking a Spanish Albarino Do Ferreiro 2004 as an aperitif. For 28.00 it's a nice bottle, fruity and floral. We sit for a long time, finishing it off and wait to be seated. Eventually seating ourselves.
The space is wide and open with the kitchen in full view. The furniture: mixed and matched, has been done so to encourage the feeling of being at home. As a converted warehouse it has white painted brick walls, and they've cut ovals from the room partitions to open it up. The candle light tables make it a great place for a date.
Reason 2 to go on a date here is the Monday Supper Club. 10.00 for 2 courses, with foie gras featuring among the selection of 3 starters and mains. The menu changes each month to follow the seasons. The ingredients are super fresh and of a very high quality i.e. the meat comes from Donald Russell (butcher to royalty).
Reason 3 is the Home Bar downstairs, it's described as one of the founding Shoreditch Hip Square Mile' spots. I find it too loud, and crowded with office workers from Thurs-Sat. But perfect Mon-Wed for a warm up cocktail before dinner and then maybe a night cap after plus some, if it all goes to plan. (For her; Passionera lime, passionfruit, 42below passionfruit vodka. For him; Scotch Cooler - J&B Rare scotch, porrie Williams, lemon, apple, fresh honey)
The head chef Richard Teague is from Liverpool, with 10yrs of cheffing under his belt he spent the previous 3 and a half years living the fast life in Hong Kong. He's been at Home for around 6mths and has moved the restaurant away from its Asian tones to more French/Italian styled dishes.
The food. while we waited for our entrees we had some Home baked bread and fried chorizo in a tomato sauce. We ordered a 2005 Pegasus Bay Semillion/Sauvingnon, one of my favourite NZ wines sitting at 28.50. It is one of the only NZ vineyards to do the Bordeaux style blend but it's much more fruity and fragrant, the calm Semillon cuts through the Sauv with its mineral undertones mellowing the drinks acidity.
When the entre's arrived they are well welcomed by the hungry table Cornish Crab with fennel, tarragon lobster and tomato cream bisque, from the specials - beautiful. Seared king scallops Parma ham, apple and fennel salad a little plain but refreshing. Pan-fried mackerel fillet with beetroot capriccio and horseradish cream crispy grilled and not to oily, great with the beetroot.
Bu the star of the entrees was off the specials, it was my first steak tartare! The knife chopped (the French team said this was important) heart of the fillet came with juicy capers, shallots, olive oil, Tabasco and the raw egg to bind it. There was no cognac, which Mr French chef pointed out, but the rest of the team found it delightful, deciding it should be added to the menu immediately.
To ready ourselves for mains we ordered a bottle of Hans 2004 Pinot Noir from Marlborough New Zealand at 39.00 it wasn't cheap, but a delicious light sharp and fruity red typical of this area.
The feature of the mains had to be the menus show off dish of Pan-fried gnocchi with porcini cepes, truffle oil and Parmesan. There was just enough truffle oil to make that musky and earthy aroma intoxicating but not overwhelming. (I've encounted dishes that have used so much of the oil that they nearly put me off anything truffle for good!! ) the gnocchi was so fluffy you couldn't help going back again and again.. which was probably a bit annoying for the plates owner.
We also had the lamb roast with cannelloni beans from the specials simply served with a lamb jus. Pan-fried organic Salmon fillet with mussel's leeks and crme fraiche mild. Jerusalem artichoke Risotto with hazelnuts and Parmesan which was a bit to creamy, though the more you eat the more the acidy of the artichokes cut through. - You have to order sides (3.00-3.50) with the mains if you want anything green but if your doing an entre and a main you probably don't need them.
Desert was accompanied by a Michel Wust gewrztraminer that wasn't on the menu and not the Ta Whare Ra we ordered, but pleasant enough but not really 31.00 worth.
The desert arrived and my evening climaxed with the seasonal special of home made rhubarb sorbet. Apparently the supplier grows it in candlelight to make the stems softer and then I bet they lovingly pick it with tender care because that rhubarb sorbet was full of love! There was a tarty lemon tart and a slightly over cooked chocolate fondant somewhere, but I couldn't see them past the bright pink glow of the sorbet
It was an expensive dinner by my standards but we did pick 4 nice wines off the typical London wine list. The list has a good mix of new and old world wines with the French wines being of the best value. I have read people think the list expensive though the wines are really nice so perhaps that should be considered.
The food was enjoyable with the entrees out shinning the mains I'd like to go back and to the Monday supper thing so I can try more of the dishes a without breaking the bank!
3 courses + 4 bottles for 4 = 250 + 12.5% service
Opening hours
Bar
Monday-Wednesday
5.30-12.00 midnight
Thursday-Friday-Saturday
5.30-2.00am
Restaurant
Lunch:
Monday-Friday 12.30-3.00pm
Supper:
Monday-Wednesday 7-10.00pm
Thursday 7-10.30pm
Friday-Saturday 7-11.00pm
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