Taberna do Mercado, Old Spitafields, London

portugal restaurants

Taberna do Mercado, Old Spitafields, London

taberna do mercado

Yesterday’s lunch was at the much talked about Taberna do Mercado, in Old Spitafields Market, a short walk from Liverpool Street Station. This is Nuno Mendes’ relatively new venture, so I was expecting great things. This is not a grand restaurant: the dining room is simple, plain and modern. But the food is extraordinary.

Runner bean fritters
Runner bean fritters

Nuno is extremely creative, and the menu is all based on small plates for sharing. There are no real safe havens on this menu for the undadventurous, so I would say that it’s not a restaurant for everyone. Some people will hate it, but those who love it will really love it. As a guide: if you are an adventurous eater, in love with flavour and texture, then you will probably love the experience.

The wine list is all Portuguese, and it’s pretty good. There’s a wide range of different flavours and textures from this diverse wine country, and the prices aren’t crazy by London standards. We went for a bottle of the Vadio sparkling wine from Bairrada, which is lovely and worked well with the varied flavours of the food.

House tinned fish: monkfish, top, and scallops
House tinned fish: monkfish, top, and scallops

This is a menu you need a bit of help with, and our server was very good at guiding us to enough plates (three per person is fine for lunch), with the right sort of diversity of flavours. The dishes arrived at suitable intervals, which worked well, too. We began with runner bean fritters, which are just delicious and moreish, and then hit one of the specialities: house tinned fish. Of the four options, we chose monkfish and scallops, and they were both  visually arresting and delicious.

Cuttlefish and pig trotters
Cuttlefish and pig trotters

Lobster rissois was delicious, too, and a highlight was the cuttlefish and pig trotters coentrasa. And I really loved the cod, tomato and bread salad. It sounds simple but it’s so tasty. With a fixed 12.5% service charge the bill was just under £100 for two, including the wine, which for this quality of food is good value.

[You can book for lunch, but for dinner there is a no bookings policy.]

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