Impala is a rare beast, a restaurant like no other that utterly defies classification. Six months on from opening, it is still almost impossible to get a table at the venue – your reviewer had his finger on the buzzer the moment new slots became available – despite it boasting 90 covers. There is a frenetic energy about the restaurant. Think big, bold and buzzing as well as crazy, charming and chaotic.
A grotty side street close to the railway arches, with a working man’s pub and council block in spitting distance, is not where you would expect to find one version of culinary heaven. However, for those intrepid diners willing to venture into the Bermondsey district of southeast London, a mighty feast awaits. Spend time in Dom Carnivoro and you could almost imagine you were in Brazil.
Pollen Street is a small, pedestrianised road just to the south of Hanover Square. Many passers-by could miss it. Which would be a pity, since it houses a delightful restaurant called Chez Rose. On a sunny day, three tables allow guests to sit outside. Indoors, the vibe is classic French bistro with a few modern twists. Close your eyes and you could almost believe you were in France.
The clue is in the name: banquet meaning lots of food, and the number eight being an auspicious one in China. This big and bold venture located in the semi no-man’s land of St Katherine’s Dock has large ambitions. The venue delivered, but it did not wow.
‘Beef and liberty’ is a very English idea (see William Hogarth’s painterly interpretation). It appears too in the logo of Hawksmoor, the successful steak chain that seems to go from strength to strength. The latest outpost of its London empire – the group has also started to conquer the rest of the country plus America and Ireland too – opened recently in the Renaissance Hotel at St Pancras. It’s very good.
Impala is a rare beast, a restaurant like no other that utterly defies classification. Six months on from opening, it is still almost impossible to get a table at the venue – your reviewer had his finger on the buzzer the moment new slots became available – despite it boasting 90 covers. There is a frenetic energy about the restaurant. Think big, bold and buzzing as well as crazy, charming and chaotic.
