Gin Tours, Drawing on Walls and Italian Food!!

Excuse the title of this piece, but I had to sum up what was an amazing supper club hosted by Donatinas Kitchen.

Here’s a blurb about the awesome ladies who run it:
“To eat well isn’t a luxury, it’s a right.

Donatina’s Neapolitan Kitchen was conceived by two hungry Londoners frustrated by disappointing eating experiences. We each learned to cook watching our grandmothers, and now our aim is simple – to bring authentic, affordable Neapolitan food to London using Donatina’s original recipes.

Come and find us at food markets, putting in appearances at the odd brewery or at one of our regular Supper Clubs.”

Ana & Jen (Donatina’s Kitchen)
So we were invited to dine Neapolitan style with London Distillery at Doodle Bar on Sunday 27^th October.

We first got to tour London’s only Whisky distillery, which was amazing. We were surrounded by so much history and the passion of an entrepreneurial business that make great Gin. Just to explain they are a whisky distillery, but their machine is not working at the moment, so they currently make Gin. Confused?? Don’t be, its called great entrepreneurial flare.

We got to meet Matilda (less person and more alcohol distilling machine) but boy was she a beauty. I loved the graciousness and the tenacity of our tour guide and the fact you could hear that he loves making his Gin. Yes it means they have to feature in our Behind the Brand soon. (But that is another story).

We did get to taste their 50% proof Gin, let’s say I grew hairs on my chest. It was quite deceptive as it had a lavender sent, but a kick like an angry horse. I’m not a Gin drinker, but I was told that was perfect.

Onto the food!!! Oh my days! It was amazing. It was the first Supper club that I’ve been to that was served family style. What I mean is that we plated our food at the tables from giant serving dishes. Think Christmas, only with strangers and cocktails.

We had an amazing table of people, which made the meal all the more enjoyable. I did overdose on the first pasta dish, not realising it was the starter.

The meal included the following:

First Course

Southern Italian Lasagne with meatballs and sausage – this dish was amazing, the sausage was divine against the sweetness of the tomato sauce.

Vegetarian; Southern Italian vegetable lasagne – again this dish was divine and the goats cheese complemented the pasta just as well as the sausage did in the meat dish.

Souther Italian Lasagne with meatballs and sausage

Main Course

Pork Fillet escalopes served with white cabbage ragu- I am not normally a fan of cabbage, but this cabbage was amazing, the ragu took away the overpowering taste that cabbage can have and all that was left was a subtle flavour of tomato and spices. Accompanied by the pork it was delicious, our table did overdose on the pork, it was so moist and tasted perfect. You can over cook pork, but this was not the case here.

Vegetarian Kale Pizza with capers and pine nuts and chilli – To best describe this dish I would have to say it was similar to a pie, the filling was amazing and the kale was not overdone. The capers, pine nuts and chilli gave a unique flavour. I am sure any vegetarian would have left very happy. Furthermore the vegetarians on the table, did leave happy.

Pizza Bread with tomatoes – Delicious

Chocolate and almond torte – What a dish!!! The presentation was amazing and the fresh figs on the top a perfect final touch. The torte was rich and flavoursome, offset by a cream topping which took the edge off the chocolate. The highlight of the night for me.

Hats off to the ladies, we highly recommend it if you want authentic rustic Italian food. On top of that the service was impeccable, Jen (one of the owners of Donatinas), was always on hand. She oozed a love for what they do, which made the meal taste even better. It’s standard that when a meal is made and served with love, the food tastes better. That’s exactly how we felt there.

I nearly forgot we got to draw on the walls! For those who have been to Doodlebar in Battersea, you know that it’s a giant chalk board. A couple of glasses of wine and cocktails made purely of Gin, you can imagine the suspect images that appeared. But again it just added to the wonderful atmosphere that what Donatinas pop up restaurant.