Basement Bistro-tech: North London’s Secret Supperclub
Honestly how many times have you typed ‘secret London’ into Google?
Once?
Twice?
So many times that it comes up in your auto search?
Come on don’t be shy. We all are looking for that special place in London to show our friends that no one has heard of but is utterly brilliant.
Well you don’t get much more secret than a supperclub spread only through word of mouth and the occasion cryptic tweet, and that’s exactly how Basement Bistro-Tech operates.
The Manor House basement hub has all the allure of a trendy warehouse with the beautiful decor of someone with an eye for interiors. Forget concrete floors and flaky walls, think large airy windows, a plethora of plants and a cheeky whisky cabinet.
Trained chef Kev Parker likes to keep the menu familiar with a flair of originality, and that evening we were in for a treat.
Nibbles were an array of colourful sweet potato chips, hummus and baked corn just to tide us over while the mouth-watering smells of the cooker wafted over to us.
Our main consisted of Satay chicken and tofu, hoisin veg, pickled cucumber with coriander and chilli rice. The satay sauce was a creamy delight and when teamed with the tangy cucumber and sweet veg tantalised the taste buds. It was funny, everyone was chatting and really taking their time over their food. One chap actually said he enjoying it so much he was purposely eating slowly while ‘mmmmm-ing’ with delight.
Dessert was actually courtesy of special guest chef and yoga instructor Amanda who constructed a vegan, sugar free, dairy free caramel and raw cocoa tart. Wow if you hadn’t told me it was everything free I wouldn’t have know. It had a nutty base, smooth caramel and a what tasted, looked and smelt like chocolate covering. A divine way to complete our meal.
Nothing had been overlooked. We had told Kev about a friend’s birthday (well actually two!) so he had even gone and bought a melee of birthday balloons for them and scattered them about the living room. The faux grass mats made excellent chillaxing mats after a long day at work, and several guests readily lay down, lost in the vibe. The eclectic after dinner beats (everything from 80s hits to Wild Beasts to ‘king of the bongo’) left others jamming and upbeat on a drizzly Wednesday evening. There was wine, beer and spirits to wet all whistles and loosen the tension of London knitted in our shoulders. Plus the beautiful warehouse cat Nina Rainbow would intermittently pop up, curl round your back and meow for treats.
A thoroughly enjoyable evening filled with great food, sick beats and a melee of eclectic brilliant people. We thoroughly recommend this to brighten up your midweek and are eagerly anticipating his next club. Stayed tuned by checking out @kelfthegiantelf. He is also popping up at the Nomadic Community Gardens in Shoreditch with his eagerly anticipated food stall ‘Wet & Dry’ where he will be applying his deep-south inspired dry rub to tasty cuts of meat, served with his own home-made hot sauce, macaroni cheese pie and a selection of sides. Also, keep an eye out for his forthcoming blog ‘Dry Rub Club
Reporter: Aspen Glencross @GollumCrackCorn #caracastle
Twitter: @kelfthegiantelf ¦ @DryRubClub
Instagram: @kelfthegiantelf/ ¦ @thebloomingyogi/
Facebook: /dryrubclub
Upcoming Blog: www.dryrubclub.co.uk/
