Baccala

Bermondsey Street is a breeding ground for stellar restaurants. One need only look to Jose, Café Murano and Flour & Grape up the road for the players that are setting the bar. Baccala is certainly worthy of its place here, an intimate modern Italian restaurant and wine bar with a focus on fish and seafood, stellar Italian wines and artisan extra virgin olive oils. Its offering is familiar enough to draw a crowd – everyone loves Italian food - but niche enough to get people to stay.

Spanning two cosy floors with a ground-level bar, the décor balances modern and traditional elements, with chalkboard menus, a well-stocked wine rack behind the bar and clean spotlights which illuminate the dining room’s muted tones.

Just like the wine, extra virgin olive oil is treated with the utmost respect. It's a technique that opened our eyes to its nuances and distinctions: one was mellow, yellow and fruity, while another was verdant green and a little bitter. Elsewhere, a clever dish of cod puree, made simply by whipping salted cod with olive oil, was presented with artistic flair, alongside meaty mussels, borlotti beans and shard-like crispbreads. These are unique dishes, and for the most part succeed in execution. A plate of prawn linguine enveloped in a sweet, peppery butter had bite and addictiveness. Not quite so astounding was a main of baby octopus which, although tasted perfectly fine, was a little tough. A hefty slab of tiramisu, however, hit all the right notes: light, boozy and dusted heavily with cocoa.

This is very nice food, but what really takes the dining experience up a notch is its wine selection. If you’re a novice and find lots of choice disconcerting, sommelier and co-owner Fabio is a fountain of knowledge and able to recommend fantastic pairings with every course. Or at least, everything we drank was delicious.

Our meal came to £60 a head before wine which, to us, places it predominantly in special occasion territory. Still, a combination of innovative dishes, delicious wines and a passionate team make it well worth a stop any day of the week.

Originally opened in Bermondsey in 2019, Baccala is an Italian restaurant and wine bar with a focus on fresh seafood, extra virgin olive oil and wine. 

The restaurant spreads itself across two floors and boasts a sleek, pared-back look. Upon entering the main dining room, guests are greeted by an imposing chef’s counter which offers a glimpse into the action of the kitchen. Downstairs meanwhile, you will find a warmly lit main dining room which features tables that overlook the open kitchen for an extra touch of dining theatre.

Baccala pays homage to its Italian roots by using high-quality local and seasonal ingredients throughout its menu. The restaurant is owned by two couples and long-term friends: Ilanit Ovadya and Fabio de Nicola, and Elif and Moreno Polverini. Moreno (a former executive chef for the Four Seasons hotel) heads up the kitchen, while Fabio (ex-Zuma and Oblix) curates the wine list. Former La Petit Maison restaurant manager Elif leads the front of house team and Ilanit is responsible for the restaurant’s design.

For dinner, diners can choose from the a la carte menu which changes seasonally and is underpinned by locally-sourced produce. Here, you can enjoy the likes of salted cod with sauteed escarole and yellow datterino, and slow-braised octopus with red wine and Swiss chard. 

It also offers a specific daytime offering - Piccolo Baccalà - which allows guests to enjoy a selection of small plates and wines for lunch. The menu changes daily and is prepared according to what is freshest that day, with ever-changing dishes written on a blackboard. You can also order the lunch menu to takeaway if preferred, and there is a wine shop if you'd like to take one of its wines home with you.

Baccala places particular emphasis on cooking with olive oil, which is used to prepare every course. The oil is sourced from trusted artisan producers and treated much in the way that wine normally would be, with the kitchen team matching its flavour profile carefully to dishes. As for the actual wine, you can expect an extensive and diverse list focusing on wines from artisanal producers, who respect the nature and land around them and many of which are organic or biodynamic.