Brawn - restaurant review

If I could, I would eat and drink there every day, says Fay Maschler
Fay Maschler21 June 2015

Scientists have found that first-born children are apt to conform while younger siblings, as time goes by, exhibit an increase in traits such as adventurousness and rebellion. A study — that presumably fell into Ed Miliband’s hands at some point — revealing this not altogether astonishing result was published in the journal Child Development. The three new restaurants reviewed here today — partly in a bid to keep up with the unstoppable number of openings — are all second children.

Brawn, in Hackney, has been created by the owners of Terroirs, one of whom is Eric Narioo of the wine company Caves de Pyrene, which has done sterling work promoting bio-dynamic and natural wines, adding interest and value to lists all over town. Executive chef Ed Wilson, whose manor Hackney is, and manager Oli Barker work the two rooms of the briskly converted wood-turning workshop with obvious satisfaction.

Head chef Owen Kenworthy benefits from a more ergonomic kitchen than those at Terroirs. You might say Columbia Road is a more adventurous area than a street connecting Trafalgar Square to The Strand; Brawn does have an agreeable rackety quality and is obviously a draw in the neighbourhood.

The menu kicks off with the unfortunate heading Taste Tickler, under which oysters, salume from Calabria, cervelle de Canut (cheese spread from Lyon) and parmigiano Reggiano comprise aperitif-accompanying small eats. After that it is Pig, Plancha, Raw, Slow Cooked and Pudding and Cheese. It is all the human frame requires.

Sitting in the back room (slightly preferable in my view), Reg and I shared six Maldon oysters (£1.50 each), salami Il Grifo from Emilia Romagna, spatchcocked quail with a wonderful nubbly romesco sauce, silky red mullet with chanterelles, boudin of zander (pike-perch river fish) with shellfish sauce, a slice of Saint Nectaire cheese from the Auvergne, and Floating Island striped with caramel in a big bowl of custard.

You may have noticed that I have awarded Brawn five stars. This is because the above meal was thoughtfully sourced and in parts bewitching (from a menu that changes daily), was perfectly executed and served by un jeune homme sérieux at exactly the right pace. Wines by the glass chosen and also suggested were revelations. It turns out that offering relatively few wines by the glass gives staff the opportunity to interact with customers and suggest others that then can be opened.

What can be provided locally, as in the Hackney Wild Sourdough baked in London Fields by the E5 Bakehouse and the cheeses groomed by Androuet in Spitalfields, is capitalised upon. Brawn accentuates all the positives in the way restaurants are going. If I could, I would eat and drink there every day.

Brawn, 49 Columbia Road, E2 7RG, brawn.co

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in