smart cooking at Brawn
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As I walked from Hoxton station towards the much-lauded Brawn, I was pondering — having also been in west London earlier that day — how each corner of London (east, south, north, west) has its own distinctive vibe which sees certain people or groups naturally gravitate to one or the other. It’s become this territorial thing.
East London — with its unabating brutalist architecture — is by far the coolest corner of this city, which is probably precisely why it’s not my corner (me and my dinner date both agreed that neither of us were edgy enough for these parts). I have always gravitated towards the softer, greener energy of south London.
Despite my choices, I am not above resenting east Londoners’ access to amazing food. I’m jealous that Hoxton residents have Brawn on their doorstep, along with outposts of Fabrique and Morito. And that, if they venture a bit further north or northwest, they’ll be treated to The Duke of Richmond, Brat x Climpson’s Arch, Pophams, E5 Bakehouse, Bright… Cool people create cool places — go figure.
Brawn has been going strong for nearly 11 years and is basically the neighbourhood restaurant I would love to run in my dreams (very much in my dreams b/c that shit is hard work and I fully intend to continue to admire the professionals from afar — for now).
What I’m about to say next might risk massively underselling Brawn (or making light of the talent these guys clearly have) but, on the contrary, it’s why I think the place is pretty perfect: this is a restaurant that is not trying to reinvent the wheel too much. Brawn simply focuses on crowd-pleasing food, elegantly-executed and served in relaxed surroundings in a cool corner of London.
I’ve not studied Brawn’s menu over time but I can pretty much guess what the formula is. For one, it’s short: they’re not trying to overwhelm you with choice, they’re not trying to be all things to all people, they’re just going to give you the food you really want to eat, with that some great wine, and you’re going to leave very happy.
What’s for sure is that they they will always serve you amazing bread with delicious butter. And they will always have those high-quality anchovies (if you don’t like anchovies then we can’t be friends) on the snacks menu because: delicious + salty + olive-oil + Instragrammable = a winner. Probably a fritter of some sort too.
Hands up if you’re part of the Association of Anchovy Adorers
Starters is where there’ll be a bit of experimentation, where the chefs and diners can get a little excited about the latest seasonal produce (in our case: summer beans! peaches! beautiful mackerel!) — a chance to try something new.
Summer beans, grilled peaches, ajo blanco, hazelnuts
When it comes to the mains Brawns will hit you with perfectly judged, classy crowd-pleasers: a filled pasta dish, pappardelle with some sort of ragu (veal was on the menu when we went), a lovely piece of fish and some meat (often lamb, I would guess) — all cooked to perfection with seasonal accompaniments, The aubergine and ricotta agnolotti we had was a masterclass in pasta, and the lamb rump with peperonata faultless. Just look at it.
Aubergine and ricotta agnolotti - perfect pasta execution
When it comes down to it, is lamb the best meat? I think it might be
And again, for dessert it’s all about those popular flavours: espresso and cream (in the form of their infamous tiramisu), chocolate and cherries, pistachio and raspberries. The desserts all have a cream element balanced by a fruity element balanced with a textural element. It’s sort of textbook but also flawless and perfect. It’s EXACTLY what you want to eat, and that’s all any of us want.
Black Forest gateau flavours without the fuss
I can admit that I was wrong about pistachios, this was absolutely bangin’
So no surprise, really: this has gone into my top 10 restaurants in London, I’ll be back and you certainly should check it out too.
Here’s what you need to know:
Near: Columbia Road Flower Market, with the nearest station being Hoxton.
Bookable: Yes.
Occasion: The kind of place that is perfect for a dinner date with a friend or partner, when you want to have a lovely time but in that low-key way. Would also be a great spot to have lunch with family.
Value: Great, I thought. Dinner was £130 for 2 including 1 snack, starters, mains, desserts and extra bread (always) + service. One of us was on wine (3 glasses) and one of us was on softs (2 cordials - the lemon cordial is excellent btw).
Service: Warm, relaxed and un-intrusive (i.e. perfect!).
Get: The aubergine and ricotta agnolotti (or whatever filled pasta they have on the menu) + lamb rump + pistachio parfait (although this is the kind of place where the menu will change regularly).
