Tonic & Remedy, London

The first thing you would noticed is the building which Tonic & Remedy is housed in. Mind blowing futuristic building that will distort your optical illusion is home to the M by Montcalm hotel. Set inside the ground floor, it is the new restaurant and bar of Tonic & Remedy. Kitchen is headed by Paul Welburn, formerly of Rhodes W1.

M by Montcalm Hotel

Menu

The restaurant’s inspiration comes from the 18th and 19th centuries, when Shoreditch was one of London’s main areas for medicine-making, surgeries, and doctors. Hence the name of the restaurant. The menu focuses on the use of herbs, spices and wine in its recipes and cocktail taking inspiration from the "apothecary history of Shoreditch".

Sourdough Bread Loaf and Butter

Crispy Pig's Head and Apple Salad

Smoked Eel, Jelly and Scones

Mr T has a thing about sourdough bread ever since I introduced him to it, whenever we see it on the menu it is a must order item. The sourdough bread came in a paper bag and whipped butter must be a fashionable thing at the moment, this was like an ultra whipped version spread like an extreme airy cream. The bread itself is average. The name of the dish "crispy pig's head and apple salad" is very misleading which turns out to be pig's head croquettes accompanied with apple. It had a dipping sauce of that similar to tartare sauce which I can't work out what it is. The croquettes was indeed moreish. The smoked eel is an exciting dish, visually appealing and when the jar is opened you will get a scent of smoke coming out. Jellied eels is a traditional English dish, eaten cold. It's very rare to find this dish nowadays but I heard it is making a comeback. The soft texture of the jellied eels can be off-putting, once you get past that it tastes great - mild and slightly salty, not at all fishy. The pickles add acidity to the dish as traditionally vinegar and white pepper is added. The scones are a nice addition, it goes well with the eels making a perfect sandwich.

Sea Trout, Asparagus, Jersey Royals and Watercress

Lemongrass Smoked Sea Bream, Squid, Sea Vegetables, Cucumber Ketchup

Creamed Potato and Purple Sprouting Broccoli & Hazelnuts

For a change, we went for the fish for the mains. I knew Mr T. was a bit dishearten when I opted out to share a chateaubriand steak with him. Reluctantly he choose to have a fish course to accompanied the wine with me. We had a carafe of Winchester Sauvignon Blanc, Harelow Cove Marlborough, New Zealand 2013. The wine was decent but it did not highlight the mains. The sea trout with ubiquitous green foam (some sort of sauce) tasted nicely of the ocean, crushed jersey potatoes sitting underneath the fish. The sea bream was the more outstanding of the two fish dishes. Lemongrass is usually associated with Asian cooking so incorporating it in a cream sauce seems a bit weird but it actually works. Fish and squid cooked perfectly and the vegetables it gives more texture to the dish. The waitress suggested we should also order some sides to go with the mains as the main course is on the small side. You can omit what she said, it's not as small as you think the mains. We still went for some sides of creamed potato and purple sprouting broccoli. The creamed potato is like an intensively whipped potato mash so it was very silky. The broccoli was a tad overcooked as it was a bit too soft, it still tasted good.

Chocolate Fondant, Whisky and Orange

Banoffee Sundae

If we didn't have the sides with the mains, I think we could have able to licked the dessert plate empty. Chocolate fondant is a dessert that can easily be disastrous and possibly the first square shape of a chocolate fondant that I have seen. The meltingly gooey-on-the-inside chocolate fondant has a touch of orange flavour and a hint of whisky coming through the palate. The Chantilly cream cuts through the richness nicely. I like banoffee and I like sundae, it's a dream when the two are combined together of banoffee sundae. We didn't managed to get to the bottom of the glass as was too full, it's a good dessert choice but not surprising. Well it was surprising to found a piece of hair in the sundae (eeeewwwwwww), with kind gesture the sundae was taken of the bill.

Old Street is getting a nice revamp with many good restaurants opened recently and opening soon. Tonic & Remedy is the latest to join the trail, There were some mistakes but the restaurant was on its soft opening. Service was good but they did slightly panicked when questions was asked. The food was tasty and fun, visually well presented and fairly priced. I'm sure to return sooner or later, to see more exciting food and cocktails.

Score Rating: 3/5

Price: £30-40/head (50% soft launch, ~£60 for 2 people)

http://tonicandremedy.co.uk/