Category Archives: cafes and restaurants

Fridas

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Kennington Cross has recently been endowed with our area’s second local outlet of micro chain Mexican Fridas. Eagle eyed readers will be aware that there is a second one in Vauxhall at the base of one of those hideous dominant buildings in Albert Embankment and we reviewed it last year. And if you live in one of those buildings we hope you’re very happy. 

Your reporter is a particular fan of a meaty burrito, and what was chosen was the free range chicken option. On the plus side, it was stuffed with mounds of fresh chicken and some spicy pico de gallo. One could say that the copious amount of rice could have been replaced with more creative additions or cheese, but that’s just us. A real standout for both the burrito and the tortilla chips was the addition of real, straight from the avocado guacamole with a kick of coriander and lime. We can affirm that it was made fresh as your reporter accidently stuck their neck into the food prep area. 

As Phil from accounts is finally meeting his targets, we treated him to the cochinita pork pibil tacos, which he sparingly described as  ‘excellent’. They consisted of two yellow corn soft tortillas profusely topped with a modestly spiced slow cooked pork (think pulled pork but spicier), along with a small amount of grated red cabbage and carrot and a dollop of sour cream. The tops were adorned with pink picked onion and coriander, creating a delightfully colourful concoction. It’s £11.50 for two, but they are of a size where that seemed reasonable.  The burrito came in at £11.90.

Fridas is owned by the same people who ran Rare Burger Co. on the same site and are evidence that running a restaurant is no mean feat, so they could use our support. They’ve given an admirable stab at transforming a burger joint into a maximalist, slightly bonkers yet endearing Mexican canteen, and on a previous visit we hugely enjoyed their cocktails. We can particularly recommend their cruise ship potency/stumble-down-the-road-afterwards margaritas.  

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Amici Summer Party

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At the Runoff we pride ourselves on making our reviews totally anonymous, sometimes to the frustration of business owners, and don’t ask for freebies. So we lay our cards on the table and admit to kind of knowing Houman and Seti who run Kennington Cross restaurant staple Amici, and we’re here to tell you about their upcoming summer party because it’s fun and good value for money. 

Let’s face it, few restaurants in Greater Kennington appear to be flourishing at the minute and Amici is no exception. Amici has survived the dual indignities of a pandemic and a basement flood (three if you count the time they decided to sell clothes and jewellery) resulting in its closure for almost two years, leading to it almost going under. They’re back with a mixture of Mediterranean and Iranian dishes and a few events to get more people through the door. 

The Amici summer party is on Thursday, 21 September at the restaurant and costs £10. We think this is good value for money as it gets you two drinks in their cute pop up stalls in the back previously sponsored by Lillet and Beefeater, but apparently now with a rum twist. Houman and Seti will also be walking around with some of their Iranian greatest hits.* Additionally there will be a band and a host of neighbours to talk to. Tickets can be purchased here and the fun kicks off at 7pm. Your ticket also entitles you to 25% off future meals.

*We stand casually yet strategically near the kitchen to grab said delicacies as the platters emerge. 

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Cue Point London @ Orbit Brewery

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Frequent Runoff readers are aware that we have our own micro independent brewery right here in Greater Kennington (Walworth) and we’re fans (Read our review here). Mind you, we could be bigger fans of their tadziki flavoured beer but you can’t have everything in life and we respect that culinary endeavour. Orbit has rotating guest chefs and for quite some time the kitchen has been home to Cue Point London, an acclaimed and delicious street food brand specialising in Afghan BBQ and brisket.  

Under the sobriquet of ‘gorgeous and very hungry members of the public’, KR staff got chatting with chef and Cue Point founder Mursal Saiq and she informed us that she was born in Afghanistan, lived in India, and is now based in the UK. Her menus embrace these backgrounds with huge inspiration from recipes passed down from her mother. Everything is made either on site or in a nearby kitchen (including the to die for naan bread), and Mursal added with enthusiasm that one objective of Cue Point is to help refugees and immigrants in the hospitality sector. We’re hooked already, so let’s eat….

Cedric, our office junior who needs to work on his timekeeping, went for the headline item on the menu: 14 hr Oak Smoked Beef Brisket Steak served with Afghan naan, jalapeño jam and Chef’s pickles. Cedric claims to have travelled extensively in the southern US and noted that the four large slabs of brisket, showing good bark (burned edges), resembled closely what he had seen in the BBQ joints there. The meat was very moist from a long, slow cooking. The Afghan twist was in being served on flat naan and with a spicier sauce than you’ll find in Texas. 

Your scribe had the naan taco mix featuring thee tacos presented in naan bread. The vegan taco was based on a smoky aubergine and pickle and Mursal informed us that she even makes her own vegan mayo. The other was generously crammed with the brisket that Cedric ordered, and a surprisingly smoky and almost sweet chicken was the main feature of the third.  Thoroughly yummy, including the little pickles to cut through some of the richness. At £15 these mains were good value: higher quality than, say, Bodean’s yet at a lower price.

To add to our carnivorous evening we had cheese and herb croquettes and cheesy potato skins, which weren’t skins as much as they were giant potatoes anointed with gooey cheese. Cue Point make all their sauces in house, and they’re all great. Double down on the Afghan chutney, jalapeno jam, and aioli for dipping everything in. And in the unlikely event that there’s any left over, take the sauce home but you’ll probably be drinking it by the time you get to Kennington Lane. But don’t take our work for it, as even foodie god Jay Rayner is in on the act.

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Theo’s in Elephant

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At the Runoff we take our annual top 10 Best Places to Eat © rundown very seriously. So purely under the guise of quality assurance and not as a flimsy excuse wolf down pizza on a weeknight,  we return to Theo’s in Elephant to see if it still deserves it’s #2 ranking.

Our marketing intern Millicent ordered one of the specials: the Fugazzeta. It was  topped with mozzarella, gorgonzola, onion, olives, garlic and parmesan. Millie is proving to be an intern without a great eye for detail, and had not read that it was in fact a “white” pizza, ie without tomato sauce. Luckily, the well drilled staff at Theo’s heeded her request to throw some sauce on top and probably upset the chef in the process. Moving on, there was no stinting on the gorgonzola, so not for the fainthearted. The result was a super cheesy-oniony topping,  complemented by plump olives and subtle garlic. And of course the usual top-notch, chewy, blistered Neapolitan-style base.

  • The not so white pizza
  • Sausage and Tropea

Your scribe had another special, the sausage and tropea onion pizza. We had frankly never heard of a tropea onion, but it was delicate, sweet, and quite tender.  The yellow tomatoes were a treat as was the inclusion of a cheese not often seen on a pizza, pecorino. But what made this pizza were the sizeable chunks of fennel sausage. And again, the sourdough and slightly scorched base finished it off perfectly. And for £12/13, it seemed pretty fair to us and in our less than humble opinion Theo’s remains the best pizza in Greater Kennington, and that is no mean feat in these parts. 

On the drinks front, Theo’s has a good selection of Italian wines and beers at good prices.  Millie was a bit alarmed that the carafe of wine ordered was solely for the consumption of your author. But if you’re reading this Millie (and if not you really should be) at the end of a day you’re just an intern so content yourself with that Pepsi Max and a made up pizza. 

Louie Louie

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When you think ‘I really fancy a night in a highly acclaimed yet quiet restaurant’ the first thing that pops into your head probably isn’t Walworth Road. But alas, on a rainy Wednesday we find ourselves at the very delightful Louie Louie, nestled comfortably between Poundbusters and one of those dodgy joints where you can get your phone unlocked. 

Louie Louie has the unconventional approach of having rotating chefs and menus in the evening, and until 2 September the man of the moment is Daniel Lloyd of Pamela’s Pizza. He was happy to come to our table and told us about his unconventional approach to making pizzas. Firstly, he plans to change the menu on a fortnightly basis (so don’t get your hopes up about ordering the pizzas we’re about to describe) and refreshingly asked for our feedback about how the pizzas could evolve. We love a passionate chef. 

Apparently the starters do not change, and to begin we have the fermented orange hazelnut foccacia with allspice butter. This was served in three huge wedges, really too big considering the mains on the menu are all pizzas or calzones. That said it was delicious – dense and, in nice way, perfumed along with a hazelnut crunch. We let Daniel (who at one point we accidentally called ‘Danielle Lloyd’) know that two pieces would have sufficed.

  • It wasn’t about to fall off the table

On the pizza front, your scribe had a beef and pork ragu pizza which was almost like a pasta dish on a pizza base. Daniel explained that one of his techniques is that he uses very little cheese and tomato sauce in his pizzas and this was very generous on the meat front, with roast tomatoes and a sprinkling of parmesan being dominant. My dining partner had a cauliflower cheese and black pudding calzone. The folded over pizza was heavy on the sauce and dotted with buffalo mozzarella and the black pudding was in small chunks. To quote this secret diner it was this was ‘a bit unrelenting in its richness and creaminess’. All in all is was a delicious, if not experimental meal. But if you go, please do not mix up the chef with a former Page 3 model/Big Brother contestant. 

If it is lunch you prefer, Louis Louie does a mean line in toasties. These are also served at their small outlet in Elephant Park, Little Louie, as are cocktails.

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Beza Vegan Ethiopian

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Beza Vegan Ethiopian is the Runoff’s favourite vegan joint and has been bothering our top ten 10 list for a number of years. It started its local life as a pop up in Elephant and Castle shopping centre in 2016 and lives on close to the new ‘so hip it hurts’ dining area Sayer Street in Elephant.

If you don’t know a great deal about Ethiopian food they make it easy for you as there is only one thing on the menu, and the very friendly Ethiopian staff can tell you all about it. The food is served on a giant platter and is intended to be eaten without cutlery by means of a glorious bread called injera, but you can choose rice (but don’t). Injera has a slight tangy flavour to it and they will bring you as much as you want. On the platter we had red lentils with garlic, sautéed mushrooms, chickpeas, spinach, beetroot and cabbage cooked in a variety of ways. The heat level was moderate but if want to ramp it up we were given two condiments. One was hot and the other felt like we were chomping down on molten lava, mitigated by free minty water.  All extremely pleasing.

We went to Beza on a warm July Friday night without a reservation but it filled up quickly.  All in all we felt very healthy when we left. Well, maybe not with the bottle of wine that we managed to neck in half an hour, but don’t judge us. And at only £39 for two people it was certainly good on the wallet. They also serve an even larger (were talking car tyre size) portion for four people, creating a party sharing vibe. This is the perfect spot to take your friends who dither over menus, as there is really only one choice.  አስገራሚ!

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The Coffee Shop @ Park College

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Like most people, on our rare work from home days we love nothing more than getting the grey matter by having a tuna melt while watching ‘Loose Women’. However, we recently decided to revisit a delightful and little known vegetarian café next to Kennington Park. 

Park College is an establishment that helps young people with additional needs (primarily autism) enter the world of work. On our previous visit we saw young people gardening, repairing bikes, and working in a design space. The Coffee Shop is for folks interested in the hospitality/catering trade, and the students cook and serve all the food with the assistance of dedicated staff. This includes sandwiches, muffins, cakes, paninis and quiches. And they’re mightily proud of their hot beverages and happy to help with your selection. 

My dining partner was once again Karen from Finance, who always enjoys a comp’ed meal. She had the falafel, roast veg and spinach wrap with houmous. This little vegan delight was presented as a wrap, and the abundant Mediterranean peppers were rounded off by chunks of falafel and mounds of creamy houmous. Your scribe had a mozzarella, tomato and spinach panini. The mozzarella was balled, rich and fresh with zingy tomato and mayo. 

While it might not reach the thrilling heights of having edible tableware (see previous post), The Coffee Shop at Park College is a relaxed and chilled environment, where you leave knowing that you have helped build a career for vulnerable young people.  It’s  open Monday to Thursday 9:30am to 3:00pm and Friday 9:30am to 1:45pm, term time only. They also have a very large Instagram presence which showcases their catering business. They also sell a sell a range of merch, from greetings cards to key chains to, um, bird huts. And we all love merch, don’t we? 

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An Homage to Oval Farmer’s Market

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Greater Kennington businesses come and go and contribute to the eclectic framework of our anointed patch. However, when some of these places become part of our identity we need to fight to keep them. One of these is Oval Farmers Market, which in our opinion has never really recovered from the pandemic. At one point it stretched around St. Mark’s Church in Oval, and now it has reduced to a much smaller patch in front of the church. Nevertheless, they still have some very unique offerings and are worth your custom. 

If you haven’t been to the Market in a while most of the old standards are still on offer; olives, biltong, a range of gluten free things, cheese stalls, fresh fish, coffees, organic wine, and meats. The large veg stall that used to be there is no more, but a few smaller ones compensate for it. There is also a French/Caribbean food stall that looked pretty delicious and has the buzz. 

After a recent visit we popped across the street to an old favourite,  Mimis Deli, with memories of a delicious sandwich we had there which was the size of a baby’s leg. The former seating area at the back now includes a very tempting Italian food market/gift shop scenario, which is more experimental than Italo Vauxhall. We ate our mighty ciabatta wrapped sandwiches snugly in Kennington Park in the company of runners who had obviously never eaten a bay leg sized meatball marinara sandwich in their lives.

Oval Farmers Market is open on Saturday from 10 – 3 and a few stalls are open later in the week. We’re aware that we are in a cost of living crisis and buying a chunk of cheese for £8 might not be the top of your priority list. But there are more affordable offerings. Sourdough, anyone?

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Ten Best Places to Eat in Greater Kennington

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(+ One Sunday Roast)

#3 PALADAR

The extremely hip restaurant ‘Paladar’ has been on our radar since it opened in 2018 and after the stingy Runoff management team finally agreed to pay for our meal we recently visited. It has shot up and nabbed the number 3 spot in our countdown. It is probably as close to ‘fine dining’ as you can get in our area, so we suggest doing for a special date. Or if you’re trying to make up with your other half.

Paladar is a Latin American fusion restaurant in St. George’s Circus near Elephant & Castle/Lambeth North. The restaurant doubles as an art space, and on our visit featured work by Ecuadorean artist Ulises Valarezo. The crowd is more West End chic than we would expect in these parts, and in fact we sat next to ‘Leave a Light On’ pop star Tom Walker and loads of people laughing while flicking their hair.

  • Pork Belly
  • Lettuce Hearts

The menu is, you guessed it, sharing plates and five items served two people just fine. We were served by a precise, chirpy and professionally drilled service staff who knew quite a bit about what they were serving and actually spoke Spanish to one another.  Highlights were  texture rich tuna tartare tostadas accompanied by a fragrant salsa which  reminded us ever so slightly of a delicious, yet expensive, hand soap. The pork belly tacos had an interesting Chinese crispy duck sticky quality and were wrapped in lettuce leaves as opposed to a tortilla. On the veggie front, we enjoyed compelling, deep fried tapioca croquettes which were savory but just verging on being sweet. We also indulged on chargrilled lettuce hearts with a nut based topping.

Croquettes and Tuna

With a bottle of wine the total bill came to £84 which is by no means cheap but it will teach the management team a thing or two before they tell us that we’re not worth the dosh. Money well spent even if you don’t get the chance to sit next to a minor pop star in a bobble hat. 

Paladar also sell South American wines in their adjacent wine shop.  We enjoyed a divine £26 Montes Colchagua Valley Merlot which was less than a tenner more than was going in the shop. 

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Ten Best Places to Eat in Greater Kennington

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+ One Sunday Roast

#6 Daebak

Since opening a few years ago Daebak in Vauxhall has been delivering consistent and hearty Korean fare in a very cool street Seoul setting. Word has now spread and it’s more popular than ever, with so many Korean patrons that you’d think a minor member of BTS was inside.   The folks are  probably enticed by their Korean down home treats such as kimchi pancakes and…wait for it….. potato chips with cream cheese powder, best consumed with the Korean beer Cass. 

For our meal the three of us ordered soy garlic Korean Fried Chicken (or KFC, a speciality, above), spicy bibimbap,  Katsu curry, crispy tofu, and gyoza. Let me tell you, reader, we were rolling out of there by the end of it. We could have easily dropped one of the main courses as they were huge. We highly recommend the various kinds of fried chicken on order (crunchy, subtle) and the Bibimbap is delicious and comes with two veg. options. I would also experiment with a starter like octopus balls. Overall it is great food, and pretty kind on the pocket. 

Daebak is small and charming, but if you are going on a weekend it might be a good idea to book, as last time we couldn’t get in we had to go across the street to ‘Jihwaja’ which was the opposite of charming. Well, unless your idea of charm involves hen do’s, stale kimchee and blaring K-Pop. And if it does then this blog might not be for you…..

Pros – It has wide open doors overlooking Vauxhall

Cons – It has wide open doors overlooking Vauxhall

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