There seems to be no stopping chef Nuno Mendes. Shortly after gaining a Michelin star in the first year of opening Viajante, he has now launched The Corner Room, also in the Town Hall Hotel at Bethnal Green.
There seems to be no stopping chef Nuno Mendes. Shortly after gaining a Michelin star in the first year of opening Viajante, he has now launched The Corner Room, also in the Town Hall Hotel at Bethnal Green. "This is a neighbourhood restaurant for all our friends,” he says of the sparsely decorated dining room with white painted brick walls and wooden wainscoting. “It's fun and affordable,” he continues, “we like to think of it as a hidden treasure." Tucked away on the first floor of the beautifully renovated Edwardian building, the room is bright, the atmosphere casual but refined, and the prices rival those of an average high street chain.
"If I'm doing a fine dining restaurant there has to be a balance," Mendes tells us, as he stands in the old Town Hall foyer welcoming guests. "I want as many people as possible to be able to experience what we’re doing here." This democratic spirit is nothing new. Such as it was when Mendes ran the kitchen at the Bacchus pub in Hoxton, he feels it’s of the utmost importance that exceptional quality and taste – indeed creativity – need not always come at a premium. So The Corner Room’s concept is that rarest of things: carefully conceived well-sourced ingredients that are beautifully presented – and all of it affordable.
Drawing inspiration not only from his native Portugal but from his extensive travels across continents, Mendes brings a world of colour and texture to The Corner Room menu, in line with his cocina de autor, or chef’s cuisine, which he described on our first visit to Viajante.
For starters, the poached artichoke with San Jorge and spinach is luminous with colour, while the squid with jersey royals and fennel left a veritable painting on the plate. For mains we have a delicately cut lamb’s belly served with courgette, goat’s cheese and wild garlic, and the Iberico pork with Portuguese bread pudding is a textural delight. Exquisite to the last, the dessert is blueberries with goat’s cheese, caramel, brioche and shiso. Keeping with the spirit of the place, the wine list features young, organic grapes, rather than expensive or lesser vintages.
With The Corner Room, Mendes is showing his dedication not only to his craft, but to the area he calls home. “I'm very happy to be here,” he says of East London, “very happy and proud.”
Text by Ananda Pellerin
Ananda and Neil visited The Corner Room on Thursday 26 May at 7:30pm. Ananda Pellerin is a London-based writer and Neil Wissink is a visual artist also based in London. More from The Hunger, and contact The Hunger here.
