REX AND MARIANO, SOHO

A couple of weeks ago I published this post, which was a list of restaurants I hope to visit in London this year. Some are new, some less so. The evening that post went live I was in Soho for a meeting which finished earlier than I'd expected, so I decided to pop into Rex and Mariano, one of the restaurants on my list, for a quick bite of dinner on my own. I don't eat out alone often, but actually kind of enjoy it when I do, especially when I end up sitting at the oyster bar where the executive chef of this particular restaurant group is working, and is happy to chat to me and answer my incessant questions!

Rex and Mariano is all about food from the sea. The kitchen areas are divided, as is the menu, into 3 sections - raw, grill and oyster bar, as well as a bread station, where the fresh bread made on site is sliced and served up for eager diners. The kitchens are open and sit at the back of the dining area, and you can either sit at tables in the restaurant or right up at bars along the front of each "cooking" station. The restaurant is the newest offering from the Goodman Group (Burger & Lobster, Beast and the Goodman steak houses), and was well reviewed by Jay Rayner a few days before I visited meaning it was absolutely heaving early on a Thursday evening at the beginning of February.

I was seated at the oyster bar, much to my delight, and a very chirpy waiter talked me through how to order my drinks and food. Everything is done via iPad here, which I initially thought would be a long winded, annoying process, but actually was lovely as it allowed me to pick and choose dishes at my own pace, and add on extras as the evening went on.  I started with an oyster, and some tuna tartare that I'd seen a photo of on Instagram and have been craving ever since. I only had my iPhone with me as I didn't even know I'd be eating out, so the photos may be a bit grainy, but I will be back and will take my proper camera then. I've never seen or eaten oysters as big as the ones here, they were gigantic. I ordered a rock oyster, but was convinced to try a native too, and it was bigger than my palm! All oysters are shucked to order and served on ice with lemon and red wine shallot vinegar, just at they should be. You also get a bottle of tabasco for your table.

 

The tuna tartare was perfect - nicely cubed bits of the freshest tuna (they'd just had a 40kg tuna delivered that afternoon) wonderfully seasoned with chilli and chive, served with avocado puree. I had to stop myself from licking the plate clean!

Each station has bells hanging for the chefs to ring when an order is ready. As waiters aren't preoccupied with taking orders, food is served the minute it's ready, accentuating the freshness that is so present in all the dishes. In fact, when I was there, it wasn't just waiters taking food to the tables - the owners of the Goodman group had been having a meeting in the restaurant, and had rolled up their sleeves and were serving food and clearing tables too!

Next up was the vongole - an absolute must try if you eat here. The sweet, juicy clams had been cooked in white wine with parsley and chilli, and were heavenly. They were also only £6 for a huge plate full. The prices at R&M are fantastic value - even the oysters were only £1.50 each, which can barely be more than the wholesale price.

In between all the fish I felt I needed a little greenery so ordered a whole artichoke. So much fun pulling the leaves out and chewing on the soft ends to get all the goodness. I love artichokes leaves and these were delicious, just with a little lemon juice and salt, and dipped in the juice from the clams.

As I said, I added dishes to my order, and last up were the cooked red prawns. They were sweet and so tasty, and I loved the way they were served with their heads still on but their bodies peeled, so you didn't end up too covered in prawn juice!

The restaurant makes its own limoncello on site, and they offered me a shot to try. It was great, not too sweet, but packed a punch and was definitely pretty alcoholic - I love that slightly bitter edge you get in good limoncello that tastes of the rind of really good quality lemons.

My bill came to about £34 including a glass of white wine and service, though they only charge 5% for service as the iPads do a lot of the work. Something I heard on the night that's a really nice touch for staff is that the service charge and any extra tips get divided out between ALL the staff at the restaurant, not just front of house.

I left Rex and Mariano full and with a massive smile on my face, walking through Soho and pitying those who'd chosen to spend their evenings and money in any other restaurant apart from this one. For the freshest, most delicious seafood and fish, at amazing prices you really can't beat Rex and Mariano.