In the perpetual commentary of ‘size matters’ Pharmacy 2 had irrevocably cemented our stance

Penny went to PHARMACY 2 18/03/2016

Specs: 👓

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Average Cost pp: £15

Nearest Tube: Vauxall

http://www.pharmacyrestaurant.com/

Celebrating our congressional ‘twinning’ birthdays Phoebe and I decided to dine somewhere a bit ‘fun’ having taken the day off work and all. After a quick scan of timeout’s newfangled restaurants of the hour we settled on Pharmacy 2 concluding that conceptual eateries delivered on the ‘fun’ criteria. Damien Hirst’s second stab at the restaurant scene, Pharmacy 2 is an expectedly artsy concept restaurant servicing Newport Gallery’s visitors and foodies alike. Pharmacy 2 executes a similar vision to Hirst and Matthew Freud’s original joint venture, ‘Pharmacy’, which closed in 2003 with Freud stating that ‘it became a very, very shit restaurant’…(!) It has since been reimagined in the confines of the first floor of Hirst’s minimalist Newport Gallery and visually didn’t disappoint…

…unassuming, the gallery is placed, or perfectly misplaced, in an industrial estate in Vauxall and feels wonderfully isolated from the clustered eateries of Soho or Shoreditch. The red-bricked gallery served as a scenery painting location in the early 1900s and so provides an expanse of glittering space to house both Hirst’s work and the restaurant. Of course the restaurant’s own interior can further be behold, an extension of the intrigue that ensued upon entering the building, and sanctum to Hirst’s distinctive imagination, we had great fun playing ‘spot the drug’ amongst the various varieties displayed on pill-patterned wallpaper and watching scientists concoct potions in flasks and petri dishes behind the laboratory styled bar. It was bright, playful and bold – a spectacle that didn’t fail to delight the birthday prinnies.

Perusing the menu we spied our usual friends, avo on toast, waffles with bacon, salmon and eggs. In their variety, of course, but excited by the eccentric ambiance I had rather hoped to gaze upon more extraordinary offerings I must admit. We went for all of the stated and decided to share between the three of us. Timely prepared and bought to us by impeccably mannered staff I was somewhat underwhelmed to see the size of the portions…For girls who like to think we’re relatively refined when it comes to eating out, the disappointment due to portion size was not something we wished to openly divulge. But I knew the distress was real and shared, despite the oooh and ahhs from around the table. We politely ate our solo forkful and passed round the dishes until they were quite literally wiped clean within five quick minutes, before Phoebe broke nerve with ‘it was a little on the small side wasn’t it.’ Brave. We all exhaled in agreement cracked a few statutory dirty ‘size matters’ jokes before we settled the bill and surmised the food to be delicious if not lacking.

We decided to walk off our morsels with a gander around the gallery until only half way round and withstanding growling stomachs, we declared that it was visually a wonderful experience but in the perpetual commentary of ‘size matters’ Pharmacy 2 had irrevocably cemented our stance and left to find some cheese or summit…

The dishes were a colourful, enticing sight and upon tasting, punchy and full of flavour

Penny went to POCO 10/10/2015

Specs:

Overall Rating:

Average Cost pp: £20

Nearest Tube: London Fields

http://pocotapasbar.com/

Sights set on an active sunny Saturday East of the city, the girls and I travelled to meet Dan at Broadway Market and trial the highly recommended Poco. Having never explored Broadway Market myself I epitomised the kidincandystore analogy on our pre-walk to Poco. Eyes a gazed at all the wonderful gastronomic offerings, musical entertainment and bustle of likeminded Londoners on similar weekend jaunts, the market pre-empted a similarly delightful dining experience. Pulled along by friends we reached a small and busy Poco bang on time. We were seated and served leisurely giving us time to catch up on the week’s activities and take in our surroundings.

Sustainably and ethically minded in its seasonal produce and ingredients Poco is likewise in its furnishings. Where possible the team have used materials with limited environmental consequence in continuing a responsible dining experience. Using slats of reclaimed woods in light hues for informal bench arrangements, exposed fixtures and plenty of green foliage throughout, the place is reminiscent of Amsterdam’s eateries feeling bright, airy and modern without a hint of pretentiousness. The place felt open and relatively spacious despite being small in size. This is accentuated by the open plan kitchen and bar area where the few waiting staff and two chefs were fully exposed to their diners. Service out in the open gave for a more inclusive, all-embracing eating experience when able to enjoy the sights, smells and sounds of preparation as well as the dishes themselves.

Hankering for Bloody Marys we ordered a round of the Harissa variant before deciding on the Papas A Lo Pobre with added chorizo, essentially a fried potato dish with rosemary, garlic and other seasoning. As well as, Moroccan and Moorish ‘Scrambles’, scrambled eggs with beans, spices and Merguez/ Chorizo sausage respectively, rationalising that a solid hit of chilli would help with our winter colds. The dishes were a colourful, enticing sight and upon tasting, punchy and full of flavour. It was tasty and enjoyable, although nothing remarkable. The bloody Mary…a little too sweet with not enough heat for my liking, but fine. The service at Poco was a stand out. Friendly, attentive staff, with good chat served us and weren’t overbearing. Overall Poco was a pleasant experience in a lovely location with clean interior, good food and friendly service, nothing to write home about but certainly made for an enjoyable morning all-in-all!

Don’t be influenced by any bias you may have towards hipster haunts.

Phoebe went to BISTROTHEQUE 08/06/2016

Specs: 👓

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Average Cost pp: £20

Nearest Tube: Bethnal Green

http://www.bistrotheque.com

It is a rare occasion that all 9 of our school friends are in the same time zone, let alone city, at the same time. Those whimsical little wayfarers seem to span all corners of the world and only seem to foregather at very sporadic and ephemeral intervals. For the first time in – what we calculated as four years- the girls were all in London for a precious nano second. As a celebratory/ rendezvous/ excuse to eat delicious food we booked a table for brunch at the former clothing factory that is Bistrotheque. Located 10 minutes off the beaten track in an industrial, concrete, no mans, this Bethnal Green hipster oasis is every bit as trendy as its locale is elusive.

But before you dismiss it as another kaleidoscopic fusion of East London stereotypes, following that ironically ‘un-alternative’ formula of thimble sized flat whites and raw vegan brownies. Hear this out. This is opinion, and certainly not fact, but it was just cool. The whole hidden warehouse, down an unassuming side street type vibe is so terribly cliché that it almost feels flirtatious. Playing at its own game. The ‘bleak’ location felt tongue –in-cheek in its juxtaposition to the clean, white and contemporary interior. Upstairs, through the palm lined courtyard is the concrete but chic dining room, live jazz pianist included. The huge room is airy and light, with white bare walls, an exposed kitchen, extensively stocked open bar and enough windows to make any 17^th century home owner wince.

We all got rather silly and started ordering copious amounts of cocktails, as only a gaggle of giggly girls who have finally annulled their imposed interactional abstinence do. Well, the girls and Alex…..who took it upon himself to seize this opportunity as a safezone for self expression. He indulged in the frivolity of the day, ordering himself the most exquisitely flamboyant pink champagne cocktails. They were recurrently adorned with fanciful little meringues and sparkly raspberries. For all its stylish tomfoolery, and uninhabited gaiety, the food was commonsensical, balanced and not too fussy. The menu is a hybridity of modern European crowd pleasers with vintage British brunch. I had crab rarebit with capers and rocket on sourdough (of course). Others included pancakes, bacon and maple syrup and characteristic avocado on toast, poached egg, onion, Sriracha. Mine was incredible, good quantities of crab, loads of cheese and sharp freshness of the capers and lemon. It was perfect, exactly what I wanted. We managed to spend a lot, but we were not short of coffees and cocktails and cakes. We all got a bit overexcited and used every excuse to justify our unadulterated excess. They have never been girls that eat in moderation, and this unique phenomenon was not the occasion to be abstemious with the  bellinis and bloody Marys. Despite our costly hedonism, there are a number of options at £8 and a dinner prix fixe of £23 for 3 courses. It is possible to enjoy a reasonably priced and good quality meal, if my rarebit was anything to rely on. Oh, and service was good…from what any of us can remember.

Don’t be influenced by any bias you may have towards hipster haunts. Bistrotheque was delicious, honest and…long suffering. Any restaurant that tolerates a gang of noisy, over excited, drunk and dare I admit very annoying girls (and honorary boy) gets a thumbs up from me!