• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • About Us
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Team
  • Contact us
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
NEWSLETTER
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home Food and Drink

Restaurant Review: CUB

Sustainability is undoubtedly the buzz-word of the moment, it seems bars and restaurants are like crafty robbers working through the night, throwing away all the plastic and introducing vegan menus “showcasing” ingredients such as carrot sticks and broccoli rice. It would seem it is no longer sexy to destroy our planet, and as with anything […]

Sara Al-Ali by Sara Al-Ali
2019-03-07 12:57
in Food and Drink, Restaurants
CUB Photo| Kim Lightbody

Photo| Kim Lightbody

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailWhatsapp

Sustainability is undoubtedly the buzz-word of the moment, it seems bars and restaurants are like crafty robbers working through the night, throwing away all the plastic and introducing vegan menus “showcasing” ingredients such as carrot sticks and broccoli rice. It would seem it is no longer sexy to destroy our planet, and as with anything that becomes trendy in a city like ours, we are left sifting through the shit to find the real deal. CUB is a collaborative project between Ryan Chetiyawardana and chef Doug McMaster, it’s amongst the few genuine articles in London, as soon as you step into the restaurant, any concern of this being just another gimmick driven cult hotspot fades away.

The décor is how you might imagine your dream home to be if you were effortlessly cool enough to live there. The tables are made from reused yoghurt pots; the walls and lampshades from recycled clay. It’s calm and playful with colour tones of greys, greens and illustrations of body parts on the bathroom doors, but best of all is the mustard yellow curved booth seating for every single table. As someone who would unashamedly push a grandma out the way for a good booth seat in a restaurant, CUB is already racking up some serious points.

The set menu is a six-course vegetarian feast with paired cocktails (some boozy, some not, one wine) for a somewhat reasonable £67 per head. First comes the Krug Grande Curvée with a water jelly mouthful, served with lettuce hearts and a healthy dollop of moreish hollandaise sauce as well as elderflower, seaweed and a fennel cracker topped with sharp blood orange roe: exciting and delicious pockets of flavour.

I see our next cocktail come dancing over. It’s a nettle, watercress and pear drink with a small garnish bush. It tastes like British springtime and evokes memories of freshly cut grass and muddy knees. This is served with Alexander (often known as ‘horse parsley’) cabbage and Lapsang Souchong – a lip smacking dish with a good level of acidity. A complete lack of textural contrast does somewhat mar the balance of flavours’ brilliance, nonetheless. Then comes the artichoke hay smoke broth with thick slabs of E5 Bakehouse bread and butter. The bread is somewhat dry yet a comforting slurp of liquid instantly delivers childhood memories of Bovril. An astonishing feat considering the complete lack of beef stock.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by The London Economic Food (@tle_food) on Mar 4, 2019 at 10:48am PST

The only wine on the menu is a Mise du Printemps Pinot Blanc, fresh and light to accompany arguably the most interesting course on the menu: baby celeriac, leek and coffee husk. Using parts of the vegetable and ingredients that would have otherwise been wasted, with surprising flavours that wouldn’t ordinarily be put together. A heavy hit of garlic is followed by a sweet, earthy hum of hazelnut, married with the texture from the husk. It’s a definitive example of what CUB is about: complex, intriguing, honest.

Then comes the sprouted grains, abalone mushroom and sauce made with Toast Ale – which uses surplus bread in its production – making a clear statement that meat doesn’t have to have a place on the plate. The creamy ale foam elicits the same reaction as cookie dough Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Just pass me the spoon. The accompanying cocktail of Chanteclair Amazake, Bruichladdich whisky and black cardamom is fortunately sour and cleansing.

RelatedPosts

How To Make: Homemade Sausages

Five of the Best: Sussex Wines

How To Make: Peri Peri Chicken

Piazza Aperol pops up in central London

We finish with what’s described as hogweed, pear and lemon thyme: the least exciting plate on the menu (especially given my completely rational fear of any form of popcorn mixed with desserts). In fairness, though, it’s one of the best examples I’ve tried. The concluding cocktail speaks my language though. A lacto rhubarb, Cognac, cacao husk taster is a great example of nature working at its best, with a milky texture. A sweet and strong ending to this clever and thoughtful menu. An enjoyable first meeting between me and Mr CUB.

CUB can be found at 153 Hoxton Street, London, N1 6PJ.

RELATED

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/food-drink/restaurant-review-fare-bar-canteen/05/03/

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/food-drink/restaurant-review-st-john/08/05/

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/food-drink/waste-charity-launches-first-surplus-bread-to-beer-ale/23/01/

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending on TLE

  • All
  • trending
Abdollah

‘Rescue us’: Afghan teacher begs UK to help him escape Taliban

CHOMSKY: “If Corbyn had been elected, Britain would be pursuing a much more sane course”

What If We Got Rid Of Prisons?

More from TLE

DWP benefit freeze has pushed 200,000 Brits into poverty

Playlist: Best of FEBRUARY 2017

‘Total betrayal:’ MPs slam govt policy as Taliban capture Afghanistan’s second-largest city

Child poverty statistics declared an “outrage and a scandal”

‘Exciting start’ Ex Newcastle United striker scores on Leicester City debut

How to plan the perfect wedding and keep it within your budget?

British strike on Iran can’t be ruled out MPs told as Boris Johnson accused of hiding behind Defence Secretary

MPs ‘uncomfortable’ with Home Office marking ‘own homework’ over treatment of asylum seekers

Restaurant Review: LINO

Police probe after two ‘extremely rare’ eagles reintroduced to England found dead

JOBS

FIND MORE JOBS

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Travel
  • JOBS
  • More…
    • Elevenses
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Tech & Auto
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Privacy policy
  • Contact us

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.