Sinabro

I've been here a few times, and each time I do I'm convinced, or rather my view is confirmed, that this is the best cooked food in Clapham. And we're spoiled for choice round here too! But this place is something else entirely. I went with my friend to this place on a Saturday night and were seated on the bench in front of the kitchen, which is a very fun place to sit! We went for the 6 course taster menu with matching wine and were really not disappointed with any of the course. To start was a lovely amuse bouche consisting of two croquettes which were really quite delicious! The starters were the pumpkin cromesquis and the seabass ceviche. I'm a big fan of pumpkin, it just screams autumn at you, and this was such a wonderful flavour. The seabass was also delicious, it's also one of my favourite fishes and I don't recall ever having it in a ceviche, so this was a new and delightful experience for me! The mains were the stand out courses Sea Bream and lamb. The sea bream was perfect, really crispy golden skin and the fregola really set it off! As for the lamb, wow, delicious and the jus that accompanied it, along with the celeriac was just what the dish needed to set it off! Desert was the booziest dessert I've ever had, a Bab au Rhum, treat this one with caution! Following that was an apple tarte tatin which was just the end the meal needed. We had the matching wine pairings and the standout was a white Burgundy st Veran Domaine de la Creuze Noir 2014 which I am now on the lookout for! My only criticism isn't even a criticism, the taster menu is smaller portions than the a la carte, but it was still slightly too much for me, but only slightly! I'm already looking forward to coming back here

Sinabro is a relatively new opening on Battersea Rise - it looks very cool and inviting from the outside and is a welcome independent addition. Inside, it's tiny, with only around 30 covers and the kitchen is not only in full view of the diners but right in the restaurant, which I liked. I like that kind of cramped, bistro vibe and atmosphere was buzzy but we were sat right by the door and till which felt a little too cramped. Service was a little slow at first. The menus weren't explained to us (the tasting menu concept remained unclear to us even after asking) and the drinks took a while to arrive. We both had the tasting menu which isn't really a tasting menu, it's just 6 dishes from the a la carte menu which you can't choose (however I did ask if I could avoid a squid starter as I can't stand squid and this was kindly accommodated). The problem for me was that tasting menus are supposed to fun and dainty, with a theme or a clear personality and I just didn't get this from the whole menu. The 6 dishes were just normal sized and didn't really seem to work that well together. Some dishes just didn't work for me and one of the desserts, poached pear, with chocolate ice cream and left me distinctly underwhelmed. That said, some of the dishes were absolutely delightful - the chicken consomme was subtle and delicious and a duck main was the best tasting duck I've ever had. The bill was quite expensive - more than £110 each, with wine. I personally think Sinabro needs to find it's identity a little more and improve the overall experience. I look forward to seeing it evolve, which I'm sure it will. I'd return just for the duck!