Evening Standard
Jimi Famurewa was very taken by “this immensely likeable slice of British-Caribbean cool” from married couple Daniel and Heleena Maynard, who previously operated Deptford’s Jerk Off BBQ and showcase the Jamaican and especially Bajan cooking of Daniel’s heritage.
The restaurant “occupies the sort of beguiling, design-forward space that isn’t typically associated with Caribbean-inspired cuisine”, making it “unique, charming and, in its own minor key way, quietly game-changing”.
Jimi enjoyed most of the dishes he tried – in particular the “moreish” stewed kidney beans and “succulent” jerk chicken. “Mauby seems like it is after slow, steady growth and permanence, rather than any frantic, short-lived harnessing of hype.”
Jimi Famurewa - 2024-09-01The Observer
Jay Rayner enjoyed himself at an ex-chippy now serving a “short, impressively cheap menu of small plates” from Daniel Maynard, who has both Barbadian and Jamaican heritage, and his partner Heleena. Named after a Caribbean soft drink made from tree bark, Mauby “has exactly the vibe you want of it: relaxed, mellow and bubbling with end-of-week chatter. It feels like a new business that has worked out what it needs to be from the very start”.
It certainly sounded good value: the “sausage of my dreams” cost £8, while ‘homestyle’ stewed beans were £6. “If that’s the style of their home, I want to move in,” Jay observed. “It’s the sort of comfort food that would make any bad day better.”
The most expensive thing Jay ate here was a “heavily sauced jerk chicken thigh and drumstick” costing £10 – a dish you might easily assume would always be available at a Caribbean restaurant, but in fact it has disappeared from the latest menu at Mauby. “The message is this: you should park your assumptions about what must be available at such a place.”
Jay Rayner - 2024-11-03
