Fodder At Great Guns Social Review
Looking for a casual, relaxed but warming atmospheric pub serving food? Look no further than Great Guns Social, a new bar and restaurant in Borough that features different kitchen residencies.
Given it’s location in a quiet residential area, it is behind the unassuming exterior of a public house on Southwark Bridge Road. Located near Flat Iron Square and Borough Market, it is a great spot for after work drinks or to catch-up with friends. The open plan and wooden furniture help to create a relaxed atmosphere where you can easily spend a few hours on a weeknight or weekend. One touch we really admired were the power points on the back of the benches.
Great Guns Social is owned by Laura Gregory, founder of the award winning global content and music company Great Guns. It offers a series of kitchen residencies to help launch upcoming talented chefs and in this way there is an ever-changing menu. The program of residencies has been curated by chef Maria Elia. Currently, Fodder is taking up residence for three months starting Tuesday 20th March.
A string of successful pop-ups have led Fodder to be shortlisted in Foodism 100 as one of the best pop-ups in London. Fodder was formed by former Feraat Claridge’s Chefs Michael Thompson and Ollie Downey, Louise Stapley and Jenny Novitzky. Their mantra of ‘fine dining gone wild’ stems from their wish to work with local producers and craftspeople to deliver a localised experienced. As such, the menu depends on seasonal availability of produce and is subject to change.
We were able to sample six items from the menu and one that is not. The menu is divided into snacks, mains ( which are divided into land, sea and earth)and deserts. Pork and squeak came in two varieties: a rectangle in breadcrumbs or a round one with crispy popcorn. This pulled pork was excellent and we’d definitely eat these again. The pork and smoked eel pie with filthy mash was good, but a little unusual as both of us had never had eel before. Cod poached in seaweed butter with sea vegetables and buttermilk was nice but lacking of flavours and the sea vegetables were a little difficult to eat. The chicken fat jersey royals, wild garlic dumplings and morels had lots of flavours with a smoky and garlic taste.This was a nice dish but if you order it just remember jersey royals are potatoes.
One thing that my friend absolutely loved was the artichokes with filling and chutney. A dish neither of us enjoyed was the celeriac, confit yolk, oyster mushrooms and three corner leek. It was a dish that was trying to be fine dining but it was difficult to eat, bland in flavours and the different textures of the foods made it look unappealing.
For desert we had nettles and chocolate: this was chocolate mouse with nettle ice cream with some wafers and chocolate. The sprinkling of seeds were imported from Japan and gave it a very slight crunch. My friend who doesn’t even liked chocolate enjoyed this dish and I would order it again in a heartbeat.
Fodder will be in residence from 20th March to 20thJune 2018. A series of monthly events, collaborations and talks about resourcefulness and sustainability in the food industry will occur. There will also be a weekday lunch offer and a Monday evening discount for hospitality industry staff. Unfortunately, Fodder will not be doing food on the weekends.Individual dishes are priced between £2-6 for bar snacks and £9-16 for main dishes. There is also a Chef’s Choice tasting menu offering six courses for £50.
Address:
96 Southwark Bridge Road,
London,
SE1 0EF
Facebook: www.facebook.com/greatgunssocial
Instagram: www.instagram.com/greatgunssocial
Website: www.fodderpopup.com
Written by Caitlin Neal.
photos by http://www.instagram.com/geronimo.boy.food
