Review - Disco Bistro EC4

Disco Bistro is home to Carl Clarke's latest venture, a six month residency at the Rising Sun pub in St Paul's. There's a not so limited bar menu downstairs in the pub and full menu in the fifty seater dining space upstairs.

After seeing the rave reviews and pictures of the mouth-watering menu all over twitter soon after its launch I knew this place would be worth a visit, and I couldn’t have been more right.

The place is dimly lit with a brick-a-brac decor, the staff are friendly yet laid back and seem to genuinely care. The crowd is a 20-30 something mix of couples and groups. The combination gives the place a relaxed yet vibrant atmosphere.

Whilst you wait for your food you get a small sugary bread roll just to let you know what a treat you are in for.

The menu is not extensive but is one of those that frustrates you by making you chooses just one but wanting everything.

For starters I tried the sticky chicken wings and the Grilled ½ shell scallops with black pudding & apple. The chicken wings were a chicken lover’s dream, the chicken was tender, batter fluffy yet crispy and the meat fell of the bone, these were worlds apart from your drunken late night stop in the fried chicken shop. The scallops were perfectly cooked with a great consistency and texture throughout whilst the accompaniment of the black pudding and apple gave a great blend of sweet and savoury flavours to the dish.

 

 

 

For the main I tried both the Buttermilk fried chicken roll with Pat's hot sauce, avocado, bacon and spicy mayo, and the Disco burger – Pure Devon Ruby patty with cheese, bacon and BBQ short rib. I have eaten a lot of good burgers over the last year since the explosion of London’s burger scene so these two had some stiff competition.

 

First off all the chicken burger, this for me was a real knockout, it had everything I liked done to perfection, the noticeable but subtle hit of the spicy mayo balanced out by the fresh creaminess of the avocado with a juicy, tender bit of fried chicken in the lightest crispy batter, all those flavours exploding and mixing perfectly with every bite.

 

The Disco burger was no disappointment either, the patty had great flavour, was crisp on the outside and blushing pink on the inside just how I like it, the bun was soft and the balance of other ingredients in the burger was done well. However the real treat in this burger for me was the BBQ short rib, this just added a layer of flavour and softness to each bite, it did make things a bit more messy but when the mess tastes that good who cares.

They also do a short but inexpensive cocktail list which are well thought out and well worth a go.

This is a must go before it ends.

Rating: 5/5
Price 2 course: £17-28
61 Carter Lane, London, EC4V 5DY

http://www.discobistroec4.co.uk/