A chef's eye view of The Loft (London's not so secret, secret supper club)

The ironic thing about secrets is that it usually the things that try to keep themselves secret that end up being the most well known. All the marketing campaigns in the world can't top our human craving for letting someone else know that you know something that they couldn't possibly. God forbid that guy in your office knows anything about it. You know, the one with the hair and the bad teeth...no way he could know ?

... or does he ?

This probably didn't occur to Nuno Mendes , (ex el bulli, Bacchus ) when he decided to set up his experimental dinner party kitchen for his new restaurant in Bethnal Green, before it opens next year. It probably didn't occur to him when he decided to host it in his own flat that a few months later practically everyone in london would know where he lives. He probably didn't think it would attract journalists, chefs, food writers and become the new found holy grail of the london foodie omniverse. 

But it did!

I first head about it from Ms Marmitelover's  awesome food blog and read about it again when london's now most important food critic,  Marina O'Loghlin ate there and gave it five stars.

I had read quite a bit about Nuno since Bacchus, which sadly I never got to visiting before it turned into a bog standard gastro pub, and I have been fascinated with his cooking style ever since. 

Nice then that he agreed to let me work at the loft with him over the summer. All it took was a little e-mail and a nice word or two on the phone. There is a lot to be said for a person that not only lets complete strangers into his own home two nights a week but also lets complete strangers into his home to work with him and cook along side him. And its mostly for that reason that I'm turning down other work to be there.

So the other night I took some photos when plating up. I didn't capture all twelve courses, mostly because I was either to busy or I couldn't get a decent shot (also I have a massively mangled finger right now from a fruit knife incident, which I also burned that night in hot milk and now have a blister the size of a Denmark. So I also had bad case of monkey bastard hands ) . I did get some nice shots though. Some of them you might notice I was massively in the way. Nobody hit me or swore at me once...which was nice.

Anyway the food...

Reverse cooked egg yolk with macadamia.

Marinated bass with frozen ponzu and apple puree

Trout with a spinach puree

Prawn and watermelon.

Squid ink porridge, pan fried squid and yuba (Milk skin)

Thai chicken broth and quails egg with crispy chicken skin (skin obviously missing from pic)

Slow cooked filet steak with mushroom caramel.

If you get the opportunity do go. It is very very good. Everything is cooked in a domestic kitchen and its all open plan. So you can come up and talk to Nuno and the other staff if you like and watch things being made. 

Just don't tell anyone I sent you.

Cause it's a secret, ok ?

Comments

[msmarmitelover]

Hey great to see you went to work with Nuno!

[Gourmet Chick]

Looks fabulous - great to hear you are working there!

[gastrogeek]

This looks wonderful, I've read some great things about it, but reading this has just convinced me to book a table!

[Danica]

I LOVE the presentation of everything!

[Bromography]

Looks fabulous! I will have to go.