Beach Blanket Babylon: Shoreditch

Don’t you love an impromptu night out?

After a spontaneous meet-up and natter with a girlfriend of mine, we decided that, actually, we were a little peckish and, screw it. It’s 9.45pm on a Thursday, somewhere in this city will still be serving food. The kitchen of Les Trois Garcons was closing just as we arrived, but a bit of sweet-talk next door at Beach Blanket Babylon sealed the deal. What’s more, we got the best seat in the house and sat in the circular booth feeling a little Scarface.

First up: the BBB location in Notting Hill is far more visually appealing and is an absolute hoot. The cocktail menu at BBB Shoreditch is also not as extensive, but still offers the infamous house cocktail: the Porn Star martini:

D H Lawrence’s Fig-cum-Passion Fruit Image

Secondly, the menu is thankfully small enough, but adequately varied, to keep your decision-making simple. We went for the seared king scallops, pan-fried foie gras, beef fillet and medallion of venison…all sloshed down with a bottle of house red.

Those scallops tasted of happy, puppies and rainbows. The table was utterly silent as we all savoured the texture, light saltiness and divine taste. They were only topped by a serving of Georges Bank scallops I had more than 2 years ago. We were seriously impressed.

The foie gras was heavenly and cooked to perfection. A delicate flavour rounded off with a delightul tart apple garnish.

No indulgent impromptu Thursday night out is complete without dessert. We thought we’d be restrained and have something light and savoury…a cheeseboard for 2.

Although they forgot to provide the grapes, the quince was delightful and the brie super creamy. The goat’s cheese was just a little bit…off and one cracker I had was most definitely going stale. Still, this place isn’t about substance. It’s about having a delightfully camp scream and not taking anything too seriously. It’s dark, it’s loud: the perfect place to let your hair down. Go there, knock back some drinks, slam your shot glass down on the table and laugh with your girlfriends.

It’s people-watching central. The food was reasonably priced and delicious, but a more extensive cocktail list for such a stunning central bar wouldn’t have gone amiss.