There is something delightful about stepping one block away from any busy thoroughfare and finding yourself almost in a different place. Notting Hill’s Uxbridge Street has an almost olde worlde feel to it. It’s certainly an antidote to the tourist-heavy Portobello Road nearby. Being off the beaten track seems an appropriate setting for Akub, a new Middle Eastern restaurant, where Fadi Kattan and his team are cooking up a quiet revolution.
The emphasis at Akub is on Palestinian cuisine, a similar approach employed by Marylebone’s Delamina. The word ‘akub’ indeed relates to the cardoon, or flowering thistle, and is often said to embody the essence of Palestine. While your reviewer has never been to the country, he certainly knows a good restaurant. For any venue to be largely full early on a midweek evening must be a sign that something exciting is going on. It’s always pleasing too to witness a team of servers who appear to be genuinely enthusiastic and excited to be serving you the chef’s offerings. With probably no more than 30 covers, the venue gives an impression of intimacy. It is divided into two sections; a lower part that meets the street and a raised section at the back, optimised for people watching. Throughout, the décor speaks to understated elegance, with some nod to regional design.
The menu too is thoughtfully composed, mercifully brief (as seems to be the current trend – and it does mean better margins for the kitchen, with less wastage), emphasising the use of local and seasonal ingredients, that have then been translated into a Palestinian style. For those less familiar with this cuisine, there is a strong presence of fresh herbs (dill especially) and pickling. One of your reviewer’s enduring mantras is that it is possible often to judge a venue by the quality of its bread. At Akub, there are three different options, or a basket comprising the trio. Most things go better with za’atar, especially bread. The mix of sumac, sesame and salt adds an extra dimension of flavour. Here, it was deployed judiciously. A good start. Moving on through the menu, it is conveniently divided into land, sea and meat sections. The former mostly comprise starters, with the latter two providing the majority of the main dish options, although it is possible to mix and match across the areas. Red lentil moutabal was a wonderful foil to the bread. Judicious use, again, of herbs and spices helped lift this dish. Cumin played a starring role. Baby aubergines, delicately stuffed with pickled herbs and walnuts – another Middle Eastern staple – was a second stand-out from the ard (land) section of the menu. Elsewhere, the cured seabass, topped with arak, olive oil and sumac – pictured – was perhaps the stand-out dish at Akub. There was little not to like. A bottle of local Palestinian beer also helped things along the way. There would be every reason to return.