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By Jonathan Byrne
The Menier Chocolate Factory
salmon with citrus cream
cheese and potato bread crisps
which he declared delicious
and loving the citrus cream
cheese which intrigued him.
His 8oz Argentinian sirloin
steak with green peppercorn
sauce, grilled tomatoes and
Portobello mushrooms was
cooked exactly as he’d
requested. Rare when he cut
into it but charred and sealed
on the outside. Menier chunky
chips and Tender-stem broccoli
are just what you need to
accompany hearty meat mains.
I could have made a main
course of confit duck
bruschetta with white bean and
blueberry compote. The
blueberry lifted the richness of
the confit perfectly. Definitely a
dish I shall try again if it is still
on the menu when I visit in
future.
An 8oz Argentinian sirloin steak – perfectly cooked.
B
orough Market has, over
the last ten years,
developed from a forgotten
area of London to one of the
busiest thriving places to be.
The market is alive with
amazing foods for sale and
there are restaurants
featuring food from around
the world. Completion of The
Shard close by has also
added verve to the area
although Vinopolis wine
world did not survive.
Since 2004 The Menier
Chocolate Factory has been an
adventurous theatre incubator
launching new works and
reviving well loved theatre with
productions that have won
every UK Theatre Award you
can list and frequently
transferred to the West End
with huge success. In 2015 it
was clear from early in the
show that Sheridan Smith in
Funny Girl would be another of
The Menier’s successes. This
year I went in trepidation to
12
THE LONDON & UK DATEBOOK
see, and then was blown away
by The Secret Diary of Adrian
Mole aged 13 3 ⁄ 4 - The Musical
so won’t be surprised if this
musical makes the transfer.
Just around the corner from
Borough Market, The Menier
Chocolate Factory also houses
a restaurant and art gallery; oh
yes, the building was originally
a chocolate factory. The
restaurant is also available as
an event space so they seem
to have all their options
covered. My friends and I often
book pre-theatre supper in the
restaurant enjoying some fun
convivial times. Pre-theatre the
restaurant is packed and the
team do an amazing job of
cheerfully serving the whole
restaurant in lightening time for
the show.
On a less busy Friday lunchtime
my friend, Richard, and I
enjoyed a delightful relaxed
lunch. Richard stayed with safe
options: Scottish smoked
Having lived in Dubai for five
years in 1990’s, the Middle
East inspired Herb-rubbed lamb
rump with baba ganoush, roast
baby tomatoes, tabouli and
tortilla shreads had captured
my imagination. Tabouli is a
dish open to interpretation. The
tabouli they sell at Green Valley
Lebanese delicatessen on
Edgware Road is packed full of
bright chopped parsley and
exactly as I remember it from
Dubai. The tabouli with my
lamb rump was mainly bulgur
wheat and didn’t quite hit the
spot for me. It was perfectly
healthy and tasted good but
not very exciting which was a
shame as the baba ganoush
was smokey and tasty. Lamb
rump can also be a risk
however this was tender and
had an almost sweet flavor.
Lamb rump and Argentinian
steak could only mean one
type of wine. Ampakama
Malbec 2016 (said 2014 on
the menu) from San Juan
Argentina. Malbec is so popular
I suspect the suppliers struggle
to find the right quality. This
was OK, spicy and fruity, a
Since 2004 The
Menier Chocolate
Factory has been an
adventurous theatre
incubator launching
new works and
reviving well loved
theatre with
productions that have
won every UK Theatre
Award you can list
and frequently
transferred to the
West End
with huge
success.
good accompaniment to the
meat but very young and weak.
Not quite the powerful hit you
want from a Malbec.
The menu is fairly simple at The
Menier Chocolate Factory and
there are no adventurous
choices. The food quality is
The Menier Chocolate Factory –
theatre incubator, restaurant and
art gallery.
excellent and cooked to the
highest standards. £107 for
two of us, two courses and
wine, is OK by Central London
prices. So the next time
Borough Market is crowded
with visitors and restaurant
tables hard to come by, The
Menier Chocolate Factory is a
great secret option.
www.menierchocolatefactory.com
www.green-valley.co