Eastside Inn, 40 St John Street, London, EC1M 4AY, 020 7490 9230, www.esilondon.com
Going to a really good restaurant for a second time is a bit like reading a hot new author’s second novel, or buying that difficult second album. There’s a nagging worry that it’s not going to live up to the excitement of the first visit, that everything will seem a little duller than your nostalgically polished memories.
So it was with a little trepidation and some excitement that we popped back to the Eastside Inn for dinner. Imagine my delight when not only was it as (metaphorically) glittering as it was first time round, but there had been changes. Good changes.
The restaurant had gone in favour of a temporary lounge space, soon to be redesigned and improved, tablecloths had appeared on tables, and the menu had expanded a little.
What Justine and Bjorn van der Horst have is a real attention to detail. Balance and poise run through everything from the food to the layout. It’s one of the few places I could eat at over and over again.
We started with a glass of champagne and a small complentary plate of intense tapenade with anchovies and crispy toast. Mr Noodles and Catty would have been happy, because here is somewhere that serves you enough toast with your tapenade.
Middlewhite pork terrine with bramley apple and celeriac remoulade must have been good. It was gone before I had a chance to filch a bite. Reports were that the deliciously porcine flavour was perfectly balanced with apply acidity and fresh celeriac.
Justine’s favourite French onion soup was something special. Dark broth had a deep rounded flavour and was beautifully balanced by bread that soaked up the liquor without disintegrating, and string of nutty melted cheese. I could have gone home then and been happy.
Onglet steak
Steak frites, simple but oh so delicious. When the ‘death row’ discussion comes up in the pub, this is the dish that people choose more than any other. And with good reason.
This version was superb. An onglet steak – hanger to our American friends – known for beng a little tough, here was a perfect combo of taste and texture. A strong, punchy flavour with a meltingly tender texture. The slices coated with seared caramelised flecks
The frites were intense. There’s no other word for it. Cooked in beef fat, they were liberally salted, with extra zing added by a judicious sprinkling of sumac.
Rabbit and tagliatelle was every bit as tender, tasty and deliciously creamy as before.
We were deliberating over dessert when an emerald green scoop of an intensely herby basil ice cream arrived perched on top of a mini mountain of frosted ice. It was a perfect palate cleanser, wiping away rich residue of the mains and perking up the taste buds. It also filled up most of the remaining space in our bellies and we had to turn down puds.
Vanilla creme
Just as well as a post-dessert arrived. A wee jar with a thin layer of blackcurrent compote topped with a luxurious cremey custard that tasted intensely of vanilla. One of the best dishes of the night. Add to that some caramel covered macadamia nuts that came with coffee and we had ourselves a trio of desserts without actually intending too. And they were uniformely excellent.
Three courses and wine comes to about £50 per head. And for quality of cooking and the overall experience, it’s worth every last penny.
Finding really good French onion soup is a personal quest – as it’s often mucked up, frankly. I hope that this is a menu staple and not a special! Already wanted to visit here, now it’s a must.
Ahhh Eastside Inn, what a lovely restaurant and what a lovely write-up. I remember you tweeting the photo of the hanger steak sometime last week just after you went… and I have been craving it ever since. I will need to return to ESI soon to give their reshuffled menu a try, also I am eyeing oysters and onglet at Hix’s oyster and chophouse…
After looking at the photo, I now have an urge for steak frites and I’m particularly intrigued by the sumac/frites combo.
BTW – Thanks for the name check and it’s good that they have enough toast to go with the tapenade but the thing is, I don’t like tapenade!
And I still have not been. Cry.
@gail it’s been there both times I’ve been and I know it’s one of justine’s face (as it says) so will probably remain. And it is a good onion soup too.
@kang I don’t know how they got it so tender but it was fabulous. The new and improved menu is great too, I’m eager to try some of their sharing dishes next time round
@Mr Noodles the sumac worked very well, one of those times where you find youself thinking ‘why didn’t I think of that?’ I now thinking of trying it out on roasties. Shame about the tapenade though… mind you, their duck rillette is pretty fine too
@kavey soon, you should go soon. It’s fab.
I love ESI too, and I’m lucky enough to call it my local/neighbourhood. It’s the best place to eat this side of town and I can’t remember how many times I’ve been in, but it’s consistently good. I definitely prefer this over nearby Bruno Loubet, Comptoir Gascon and the like.
I can’t believe you didn’t have desserts – you’ll need to rectify that soon and would recommend the souffle and the chocolate (with tonka bean ice cream). If you liked the onglet, you’ll love their côte de bœuf.
I adore EI. Great that you got some bits and pieces from the main restaurant in the bistro – the basil ice cream and the petit pot. EI is a simply brilliant place.
@vic I agree with all that you say. I’ve had the souffle before and was ace, this time I think having tapenade and onion soup to start defeated me by dessert time. Next time!
@ollie it is fab, and now they’ve expanded the menu and improved the space, it’s even better. EI is now one of my top restaurants in London.
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