Back once again with the ill behaviour
Brick Lane - January 2017
Hello?
Hello?
Is this thing on?
After a year off blogging duties, I needed a more positive past-time than scrolling through the ‘fresh-horrors device’ that is current events-twitter these days, and so Big Eatings is back for 2017! Kicking things off with one of London’s hottest 2016 openings - The Frog - are we back with a banger?
In finishing as the runner up in Masterchef: The Professionals in 2013, Adam Handling came across like a fine-dining automaton. Efficiently turning out precision plates, but lacking warmth, that had you gunning for the eventual victor. Emotion aside, no-one gets to the final of Masterchef without great skill and his first independent restaurant has been picking up a load of plaudits (in fact the day we went it was announced he was opening site number 2 in Covent Garden). So we were excited to check it out.
There’s a lot that makes me want to like The Frog. A great graffiti logo, a laid-back dining room that’s full of reclaimed table & chairs with cool art on the walls, and music that may as well be my Spotify discover list.
It feels very familiar, however. The kraft-paper menu of “British tapas” - split into garden, land & sea - is identical in style to that of The Dairy, as is the quirky stoneware the dishes come on.
The most raved-about dish is also startlingly similar to Clapham’s finest – warmed sourdough served in a hessian sack, with a quenelle of chicken butter. The Dairy’s version is better. Both are delightful, savoury treats, but the chicken liver mousse is lighter and richer with meaty flavours, than the Frog’s butter. I’d happily eat either with any meal, though.
The cod rolls are well made but an overpriced, and ultimately uninspiring, half-mouthful.
Two of our mains are labelled as BBQ, but have an interesting contrast. We have a soft silky veal tartare (the steak replacement after running out). Sweet and delicately smoky, with sharpness from the capers. But a gelatinous slow-cooked yolk denied us a joyous puncture and oozing egg moment.
This was followed by a beautiful-looking plate of octopus tentacle. The sauce and seasonings were balanced to perfection. The garlic puree was absolutely banging. A crying shame then, my half of the octopus was tough and actually lacked the smokiness of the (raw) veal. 30 seconds less cooking time from being an incredible dish.
Now, a word on the house’s signature mac & cheese. In many ways, the nicest I’ve ever eaten...
The presentation is original – a honeycomb effect of vertically arranged, al dente macaroni, covered in a light creamy cheese sauce that’s almost foam. All topped with an umami mound of parmesan. It lacks a crunchy crumb, but it’s decadent and delicious.
Then throw in the optional truffle topping, and it’s luxurious to the max... But that comes at a price, for a dish that is already the most expensive on the menu.
Those truffles shavings (not offered as an optional upgrade on the menu, but by the chef bringing it to the table, with the truffles staring you in the face when you’re waaaaay less likely to say no…) are a £10 supplement to a SIXTEEN pound mac & cheese. Total £26. For a mac & cheese. Delicious it may be, but that is just too rich for what you get.
Desserts were great. The chocolate caramel & cherries is a classic combination given a theatrical twist with a liquid nitrogen cherry ice-cream smashed over the rich chocolate. And the burnt toffee and malt ice cream is a comforting mix of sweet, crunchy & tart; with shards of lemon that refreshed and delighted at the end of the meal. Neither dish lasted long.
The Frog is good. Decent. But hardly ground-breaking. Hell, some wheels don’t need reinventing when the food is tasty and looks great. It will doubtless be a success in Covent Garden. And if they have a 50% soft launch, I will be back to order the mac & cheese.
The Frog
2 Ely's Yard,
Old Truman Brewery,
Hanbury Street,
London,
E1 6QR
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