It is roughly three miles from Belsize Park, a comfortably wealthy north London suburb, to Mayfair. Or step out of one of the grand houses close to the euphemistic ‘Belsize Village’ square and you will find Mimi. More than a neighbourhood local, Mimi felt to this reviewer that it would be much happier in W1 than NW3. If glitz and glamour is what you want – without the central London hike – then Mimi is for you.
Read Mimi’s website and you will find “Italian elegance meets Asian allure” at the restaurant. To a sceptic, this sounds as if the venue is aping the likes of Novikov or Roka, or less charitably, even the Ivy Asia. Step into Mimi and you will see its wine racks full of Bollinger and Ruinart champagnes – just what I normally order on a midweek night. Have no doubt, Mimi is very elegant. There are deep red banquettes, lots of natural light, a cool bar and an on-trend soundtrack. It’s also very large. Great for parties, I’m sure, but less so for intimacy, I imagine.
A look at Mimi’s menu shows a natural bias towards all things Italian but there are, of course, the inevitable Asian twists. Pork belly bites come with ‘sticky Asian dressing’ while duck croquettes are accompanied by ‘hoisin sauce and sesame seeds.’ Fine, but rather predictable. Wasabi mash alongside a tuna steak admittedly does sound more intriguing. Our group of three leant on local knowledge. The aforementioned pork belly bites were, apparently, a must. They were very good, with a real depth, juice and crunch to the meat, even if the dressing did not strike this reviewer as particularly Asian. The trio of mains our gang selected all veered towards the Italian side of things, favouring spaghetti with prawns, a duck ragu and a piece of sea bass. Each was executed highly competently and served attractively. Perhaps this is all one really wants (and needs) in a neighbourhood local. Perhaps the best message to Mimi then is to keep it simple.
More price conscious customers may also want to choose carefully at Mimi. Our meal, which comprised a shared plate of the belly bites, three mains, a team tiramisu and a small handful of drinks (of which only two were alcoholic) came to £50/head all-in. However, a veal Milanese would set one back £36, and a Dover sole almost half as much again. Wines top out at £400 a bottle. Good luck to Mimi. As long as the locals do keep coming, then the management will be happy.