UBA is an excellent Pan-Asian dining spot that opened in Shoreditch with a splash earlier this year. Having settled in, they are now bringing their spin to that most Western-city-dweller of rituals: the weekend brunch. Launching on 20th July with a bottomless drinks package, cocktails in partnership with 818 Tequila and rotating live music and DJs, the UBA brunch is available alongside a reduced a la carte menu on Saturdays and Sundays from 12pm-4pm. Sounds perfect to me for parties with pals, relaxed get-togethers with the gals, and long weekend catch-ups.
Created by Head Chef Pavel Baranovs and inspired by the bustling streets and aromatic alleys of Asia’s most vibrant cities, UBA’s new menu features a slew of dishes that see brunch staples sprinkled with a Pan-Asian take on things.
Highlights include Japanese Okonomiyaki, a savoury pancake packed with cabbage, nori, spinach, cheese, katsuobushi, ramen noodles and gooey onsen egg; and Japanese Waffles made from green tea and buckwheat and served with spinach, smashed avocado, tenderstem broccoli, watercress, onsen egg and a sweet blend of smoky maple and chilli jam! Both dishes can be customised to your heart’s content with additional toppings such as smoked salmon, bacon, short rib and crispy chicken. And, for a sweet treat, there are Souffle Pancakes made from kinako soy powder and piled high with matcha ice cream, plum syrup and gin and tonic candy floss.
Now as any fule kno, where there is brunch, copious amounts of booze are never far behind. And UBA are hardly going to let Londoners down in that regard, so they have partnered with 818 Tequila to create a slew of new brunch cocktails including UBA Paloma where tequila flirts with sake andwhich is topped with chamoy, grapefruit soda and zingy yuzu juice; and the UBA Tropical Gelato with rum, mango purée, yuzu juice and coconut cream foam. I might prefer a dry martini, but I bet I’m the only one.
And in a world where being tee-total should never spoil the fun, mocktails have been given equal care and love – you can enjoy refreshing sips such as the Highland Sunset with Everleaf Mountain, tonic and strawberry or the Coastal Zen with flavours of shisho, apple, cucumber and yuzu.
For the bottomless brunchers and party goers a special package for 90 minutes of bottomless prosecco is available for a gobstoppingly reasonable £30. Now I don’t know if that offer is capable of withstanding the attentions of some of the brunchers I know, but just in case not I would suggest heading here sooner rather than later just in case a rethink of the pricing policy is forced upon them.
UBA’s brunch is available to book on weekends from 20th July at https://www.sevenrooms.com/reservations/uba
UBA London, 61 – 67 Great Eastern Street, Shoreditch, London EC3A 3HU – www.ubarestaurant.com