Spain

Gremio de Brixton

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gremio04 address: underneath St. Matthews Church, Brixton Hill SW2 1JF

telephone: 020 7924 0660

http://gremiodebrixton.com/

It’s more than a year and a half since we first reviewed Gremio (see here) but little has changed, although the lighting is better and the number of customers has swelled. It lies underneath St Matthews Church with the entrance down some steps on the northern/town centre side. The crypt is a restaurant and bar with tables outside overlooking the Peace Garden – even in the depths of a winter’s night there were a few hardy souls or perhaps committed smokers sitting there. It is a bit like a cut down version of the Mezquita in Cordoba. Lots of pillars obscuring the view of the other diners, making the spaces a bit more intimate (so might be good for Valentines). The bar is dark and looks smoky, although, of course, it isn’t, but the spaces are again small and dark. The restaurant tables have overhead lights, making it possible to read the menu.

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The Provincial

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Address: 21 Market Row, Brixton SW9

Provincial has been known as the place where you do not know when or if you will get the food you ordered. We decided to test this again after we had a recommendation to try their ceviche. Now we know a little something about ceviche having learnt how to prepare it on the Amazon and eating in the best ceviche restaurant in Peru – showing off I know but we wanted you to know that we have got some expertise in judging this dish and its authenticity.

Provincial opens its doors so that it flows into Market Row. With its colourful orange interior and the wall mural of Peruvian life it does have the feeling of a South American restaurant down to the rickety chairs and tables. They can take larger groups as we saw on the Saturday night that we visited. The waiting staff were all women overlooked by the manager who pops into the restaurant from the kitchen to deliver food directly to the tables.

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A&C Continental Delicatessen

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2013-12-11 16.14.03

3 Atlantic Road, SW9 8HX

020 7773 3766

A&C Continental Delicatessen is the best food shop in Brixton. It’s also, incidentally, the friendliest. It’s been around for twenty years or more and runs the risk of being taken for granted. But it’s a gem of a place and can easily withstand any competition from the newcomers now coming to Brixton. I’ve always assumed the people who run the shop are from Portugal but the stuff they stock ranges across the whole of southern Europe.

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Gremio de Brixton

~ eatinbrixton ~ Leave a comment

gremio04 address: underneath St Matthews Church, Brixton Hill SW2 1JF

telephone: 020 7924 0660

http://gremiodebrixton.com/

We have no idea why we have waited so long to make a visit to Gremio de Brixton. It is underneath St Matthews Church – a place we know well as one of us went to playgroup there. But now the whole of the crypt has been turned into a restaurant and bar with tables outside overlooking the Peace Garden. But there was no room outside on such a warm evening so we headed into the dark cool depths to the cellar like rooms. It is a like a cut down version of the Mezquita in Cordoba. Lots of pillars obscuring the view of the other diners (although there were none when we visited). All the small tables were lit with a single candle but with overhead lights making it relatively easy to read the menu. The ceiling is low, the music loudish and we thought when full the noise would echo off the plain brick walls and pillars. But nonetheless we thought it was a fantastic venue.

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The Provincial (formerly Tapas Pa’Ti)

~ eatinbrixton ~ 6 Comments

Address: 21 Market Row, Brixton SW9

Another of the new restaurants popping up in Market Row is Tapas Pa’ti (translated to Tapas For You) a place advertised as serving home cooked Spanish tapas. With an open front and tables both inside and out, Spanish music playing in the background and the red brick décor and dark wood the place has a real feels of a traditional Spanish bar.

Before I begin on the food I must point out that the eatinbrixton gang are frequent visitors of Spain, meaning we are huge fans of tapas. One thing I love about tapas is the environment that you eat it in. With baking heat, Salsa music playing in the background, a leg of ham hanging from the bar and usually a couple of regulars who seem to always be hanging around, all create the mood of a Spanish bar. Luckily this place creates that for us (although don’t rely on the weather!).

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