REVIEW: Cottons Restaurant & Rum Shack

When news got to us on Caribbean restaurant, Cottons, opening in Notting Hill, we picked up our bags and hot footed on down to Notting Hill. The first Cottons to open was in Camden and 30 years on it’s still a firm favourite amongst the locals and tourists.

Now we all know the Caribbean is known for their good rum and Cottons doesn’t disappoint, stocking over 300 different rums, it’s certainly a rum cocktail paradise, with happy hour from 5 – 7pm. You can also enjoy bar snacks, which include: Jerk pork ribs and  Ackee & Saltfish.

We headed on over to the main part of the restaurant to have a taste of what the A La Carte menu has to offer. For starters we had the barbecue glazed pork belly with rum and molasses and pickled vegetables, the pork was juicy, bursting with flavour and the vegetables were marinated to perfection.

For the mains we went with the ‘Cottons signature meat platter’ which contained jerk marinated and grilled pork ribs, lamb chop, chicken pieces and herb crusted salt beef with plantain and rice and peas. Yep it certainly sounds like a lot but we had pretty big appetites on the day. The meats were succulent and marinated well with Caribbean herbs and spices. For the sides we had doubles (traditional double fried flat bread) and extra plantain. For those unfamiliar with the names of the different types of dishes, fear not as Cottons includes a cheat sheet with their menu, describing what each dish is.

After the very delicious mains, we came to the conclusion we would share a desert and opted for the Chocolate praline bar, a chocolate cake with praline mouse served with lemon curd and a square of ice bubble gum marshmallow and yep it was as fancy as it sounded! It was a little piece of heaven and it tasted even better than it looked (and that was pretty hard to do…) it was a melt in your mouth experience and one of my favourite deserts to date.

The restaurant had a great vibe, with a mix of people who were excited and curious to see what Cottons, Caribbean dining experience would be like in Notting Hill and as I looked around the restaurant, I saw a lot of happy faces including our own.

Website: http://cottons-restaurant.co.uk

Address: 157-159 Notting Hill Gate, London, W11 3LF

Twitter: @CottonsLDN

Written by Nyla Sammons

Photography by Nyla Sammons