The Guardian
There’s nothing fancy about this place, reported Grace Dent – “I’ve sat in plusher minicab office waiting rooms” – but she was bowled over by chef Whyte Rushen’s “comfort-food classics: burgers, spag bol, fish and chips”, which “quickly pivot into postmodernism” by topping oysters, say, with pickled onion Monster Mash, or serving tempura of octopus tentacle in a “puddle of chip shop-style curry sauce.”
The former pop-up specialist, now at his first permanent site, changes his menu frequently – “as I write he is going through a French period, offering confit trout with brown shrimp butter and braised rabbit with chocolate sauce and buttered cabbage”. All in all, Grace rated her meal “weird but still pretty wonderful”.
Grace Dent - 2024-03-03The Times
Charlotte Ivers joined the throng eager to sample Whyte Rushen’s “hipster twist on the classic French bistro”, casting her eye grumpily over the sartorial approach of both chef and audience – all bushy beards, lumberjack shirts and baseball caps. The menu’s “ironic touches” – oysters topped with Monster Mash, steak tartare with Rice Krispies, foie gras “nuggets” and so on – also raised her hackles.
Which brought her neatly to a happy reversal: “The thing is, while this place is too clever by half, nobody could claim this isn’t just really good cooking. If you’re a purist, you’ll come here wanting to hate it. But once you’ve eaten the food, you won’t be able to.
Charlotte Ivers - 2024-03-03
