Rivington Bar and Grill

Set in Rivington Street, near Old Street Tube in trendy Shoreditch is The Rivington Bar and Grill which is owned by Caprice Holdings (The Caprice,  The Ivy).  One of two in London (the other is in Greenwich) the Rivington Shoreditch offers traditional British fare beautifully crafted from fresh, often locally sourced, produce.  The surroundings are 'New York meets Berlin' with a range of Art Deco architectural styles and lots of street art.

 
We arrived for dinner at the start of the London weekend (Thursday evening), were greeted warmly at the door and encouraged to relax and have a drink at the bar, as our table "will not be going anywhere". I dislike being rushed in a restaurant so this was a positive start which continued as we studied the vast array of gins on offer, finally choosing after advice, and a few tastings, provided by the barman.  We opted for the Colonel Fox and Rock Rose with Fever Tree tonic. Colonel Fox London Gin is made to an 1859 recipe and is flavoured with juniper, coriander, angelica, cassia, liquorice and bitter orange peel. Rock Rose is prepared and hand distilled in the Scottish Highlands and is flavoured with Juniper, Rose Root, Sea Buckthorn and Rowan berries.

 We were seated in the restaurant area which is decorated with whitewashed walls, stripped wood floors and bespoke Deco lamps. The decor is simple with clean white tablecloths and warm lighting to create a relaxing environment which is contrasted by the incredible buzz of conversation and enjoyment.  Maybe not a place for a quiet romantic tete-a-tete but tables are far enough apart for a feeling of your own space.  Art figures large at The Rivington, as it does in the whole area, and we were close to Tracy Emin's neon 'Life Without You - Never '.

Tempura battered squid

 The menu is not complicated and there are several seafood choices on offer including, fresh oysters, tempura squid, battered haddock, scallop ceviche, monkfish masala, smoked eel and cod with mussels.

I opted to start with the Tempura battered Cornish Squid with Chilli Jam.  Superb light batter, the pure white squid was tender and flavoursome and enhanced by the tangy jam. This is not fine dining but high quality food prepared from fresh produce and expertly presented. Most of all its is delicious.

Scallops, haggis, tatties,  neeps

For main it was Seared Cornish Scallops, Haggis, Bacon, Tatties and Neeps.  This arrived as five individual scallop shells each of which contained the entire combination and delicious it was too.  A nice change from the traditional scallop perched on top of black pudding.  

 Rounded off with a bottle of Picpoul de Pinet this was a very pleasant evening and I look forward to another visit.