Where's on my to-do list before summer ends?
Lolo
I love a place that claims to be an ‘all day destination’ (if I opened a restaurant, that’s what I’d want it to be – somewhere you can just as easily take your laptop and tackle some emails over a flat white, as you can spend a long liquid lunch or birthday dinner).
Lolo’s is named after owner José Pizarro’s middle name. It’s the third restaurant he’s opened on Bermondsey Street, which seems like an odd choice, but who can blame him? It’s a very nice street.
The menu looks delicious: it’s a little more refined than tapas bar José, but still more ‘picky bits’ leaning than sit-down restaurant Pizarro. Lolo’s breakfast offering actually looks very tasty, featuring an egg and bacon sandwich with pineapple ketchup, and a ham and cheese sandwich with black truffle. But I’d probably go for the ‘pica-pica’, such as tinned mussels in escabeche with crisps and chive, or the chicken liver parfait with PX vinegar.
Sadly the soft launch bookings got snapped up quicker than reduced food in M&S (which is no surprise given the permanent queue outside his flagship restaurant). But I’m determined to visit while the sun’s still out and spend a few hours perched at one of the bar stools outside, ordering round after round of tortilla.
Lucia’s
As cities go, London’s got a pretty good grasp on international cuisine. It’s got Michelin starred Indians like Gymkhana, one of the best Chinatowns going, and more Modern European restaurants than you could ever hope to keep track of.
But Mexican food is where it all falls down.
I’ve never been to Mexico, so arguably I don’t know what I’m talking about, but it’s rare to find a Mexican in London that toes the line between authentic and delicious (Taquiza in Peckham is probably the closest I’ve found).
Word on the street is that Lucia’s picks up the slack. “Tacos and mezcal in the heart of Hackney Wick” is how it describes itself. It’s a tiny little hole in the wall joint, hidden by graffiti’d shutters with just a couple of roadside tables. There’s been pretty much no PR or hype surrounding its opening – which hopefully means bagging a seat at the counter should be a breeze.
The menu looks perfectly compact; a mix of smoked meats, grilled vegetables and tostadas. And supposedly the only option for dessert is chilli chocolate truffles, which the chefs hand roll in front of you.
Mexican food screams ‘summer’ to me, so I can only hope washing a plate of beef barbacoa down with an ice cold paloma tides me over until I finally make it across the Atlantic to the real deal.
Black Cactus BBQ
Unlike Lucia’s, Black Cactus BBQ has seen a fair bit of publicity (mostly from the likes of incredibly annoying TikToker Eating with Tod).
While the weather experts initially predicted we were in for a washout of a summer, the sun seems to be sticking around this month, so what better time for a BBQ?
Popping up at Exale Brewing in Blackhorse Road for the summer, Black Cactus offers a rotating menu depending on which day you visit. Thursday and Friday are all about the burgers, Saturday is for smokehouse buns and BBQ trays, and Sunday is for so-called sexy sandos.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll find on Saturday’s BBQ tray:
Smoked short rib with stout, tamarind and treacle glaze and dark chocolate
Brisket with avocado chimichurri
Sticky Seoul pork belly burnt ends
Dry age rib honey and fennel sausages
Vast platters of smoked meats wouldn’t usually have me trekking across London, but I’m yet to hear a bad word said about what these guys are cooking up. If you find yourself in North London, working up an appetite with a cycle around Walthamstow Wetlands followed by a trip to Black Cactus sounds like a solid Sunday plan.
Before you go… dying to try | recipe of the week | give this a read