Month: August 2012

Brixton – Washington DC

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address: 901 U St. NW,  WASHINGTON, DC 20009
telephone: 202-560-5045

http://www.brixtondc.com/

Is imitation the sincerest form of flattery? We decided to see if it was after noting a post on Urban75 (here) that there was a Brixton bar and restaurant in Washington. We were also interested in the ‘gentrification’ issues that the bars in this area had generated, as they seemed similar to those being discussed in Brixton blogs.

The Brixton is a “concept” bar with food. It was opened by a company called Brixton that herald from San Francisco and they make clothes. We believe (the barman told us) that they were originally from South London. But this is not any part of South London that we have been in. The surrounding streets were part of a mainly black community (so that’s the same). In fact Obama chose Ben’s Chili Bowl which is just along the street from the Brixton to emphasise his black credentials and there is a monument to Afro-americans who fought in the War of Independence. The area is now being “gentrified” with new businesses mainly being run by white entrepreneurs – hence the discussion thread on Urban75.

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Bellantoni’s – Now closed

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address: Unit 81, Brixton Village Market, SW9

telephone: 078 7294 5675

For information see http://www.bellantonis.co.uk/Welcome.html

After a Christmas break the chef proprietor Dario Bellantoni has returned.  Easy to detect how the name of this Italian restaurant came about. But it is difficult to understand where some of the additional comments below their name come from but more in a minute. It is spread across two sides of an alleyway in Brixton Village with one side an open kitchen and a few tables and on the other a small dining room – in between the windswept alleyway with tables which is where we ended up – only daring to remove our gloves to eat. But in the summer — you guessed it — we ended up in the dining room as all the other tables were full. The dining room was empty for most of our meal which meant we could easily talk above the din of the busy Sunday lunch crowd.

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Upstairs

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UpstairsAddress: 89B Acre Lane, entrance on Branksome Road, SW2 5TN

Telephone: 020 7733 8855

http://www.upstairslondon.com/web/index.html

We are realising the need to update our posts and so will be repeating the old information and changing our views (if we think they are different from before). For this restaurant we are only heaping more praise so read on.

Finding and getting in to Upstairs is a feat in itself. Although the restaurant overlooks Acre Lane the door is in Branksome Road and even with these instructions it can be missed. There is a doorbell just round the corner of Acre Lane and a discreet notice. After ringing, the door mysteriously opens and you enter a two up two down house – although in fact it is three floors. The first floor now contains a much reduced bar area where you might stop for an aperitif next to the fire or continue “upstairs” to the main dining  room –  minute but not seemingly crowded. The bar area has now been converted to include more tables presumably because of its popularity and consistent quality.

Who would believe that such a secretive restaurant would be so good and so consistent. Although the secret is out and we definitely can’t now appear without a booking. This is an Anglo-French restaurant with a good but blessedly short menu of fish, meat and vegetarian courses. All are wonderful. On a previous occasion I couldn’t make up my mind so we had the tasting menu.  Never a bum note in the list. Lots of interest and changes not too drastic between courses. On our most recent visit we chose the a la carte menu and again were pleased with everything. Small soups with intense flavours and things made of beetroot stick in my mind. We went with a discerning wine drinker and the wine was good and not expensive. The cocktails too are interesting and fizzy wine very palatable.

Everything on the menu changes by the season so there is always something of interest. This is not cheap eating establishment but is a place for celebration or a quiet dinner for two or four. Conversation is easy to make and the service is very good and not at all intrusive but at the same time informative. For people who have had the cocktails trying to remember what we ordered was a little tough so a reminder at each course was really welcomed.

You definitely should book as it is only open for dinner and not then on every night. When we went on a Thursday it was relatively clear as the tables in the downstairs room seemed to be empty. So probably a late booking would be fine. You can book direct or through toptable.

Eating on a Monday

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This is not a usual post on this site as it is not about a new restaurant. It isn’t that there are no new ones opening it’s is just that we are waiting for them to settle down (e.g. Cannon and Cannon in Brixton Market). But we have recently come across a problem so thought we might address it here.

The issue is where to eat on a Monday evening. This is never a popular day to eat. Perhaps it’s because we have gorged ourselves on the Sunday roast or that the chef needs at least one day off a week. But all over London most restaurants are closed on Mondays. In Brixton the list is endless – including of course all those in the market (although you can still squeeze into Seven if you don’t mind eating very early). It’s a little more promising along Atlantic Road with Kaff open seven days a week, with food served daily until 10.00 pm. That’s because the kitchen is off site so they only reheat it. However you can have an all day breakfast at Lounge, which then closes at 5.00 pm. Irritatingly some restaurant websites do not have their opening times (e.g. Khan’s) so it needs lots of phone calls to assess whether they will be open.

Along Acre Lane, Veranda, Brixton’s gourmet Caribbean restaurant, is tantalisingly open but only for a themed evening in the bar with table football and cocktails. Further along at 6.30pm, Upstairs is closed and so is Khamsa. Eventually you get to Boqueria, the tapas bar and it is an oasis. The bar is open for ice cold sherry and the restaurant is open for its full menu including the large chalk board of specials.

When we arrived at Boqueria at 6.45 pm it was sparsely populated, but we were not the only ones who had eventually found sustenance. So this is the place to go when the thought of the reheated Friday night Indian food or a plate of cold risotto is unappealing. It is also much quieter on a Monday, so you can actually have a conversation, sometimes tough in most popular restaurants. This one has bare walls and lots of glass so the sound just keeps bouncing around.

We left early (well it was a Monday) but after our fill of padron peppers, chorizo, fried aubergine and other delicacies (not an adjective we often give to a tapas). We washed it down with Rioja and manzanilla. We also had good service. This is not always the case in Boqueria as on other visits they have been caught out by a “rush” without enough staff. On one occasion we even found it difficult to pay the bill as no-one seemed to be paying any attention to turning over the tables quickly. But on a Monday there is a lot of attention with the food arriving at a steady pace (also lacking on the previous occasions).

So we welcome comments on other restaurants in Brixton which are open on a Monday (apart from the pubs) to add to our current very short list.

More recommendations for where to eat in Brixton on a Monday from our lovely Twitter followers

  • Negril (Carribean – 132 Brixton Hill)
  • Khan’s of Brixton (Indian – 24 Brixton Water Lane)
  • Ichiban (Japanese – 58a Atlantic Road)
  • Fujiyama (Japanese – 5-7 Vining Street)