KRICKET, POP BRIXTON

I've got such a great restaurant to tell you about today. Last week I popped down to the new-ish (I hadn't been yet, so new to me) food market in Brixton - Pop Brixton. It's nestled in behind Brixton Village and is made up of shipping containers that have been converted into very cool bars, shops and restaurants. Arriving, I was distracted by some beautiful jewellery from a brand called John and Pearl, but the real reason I was there was to try out a restaurant called Kricket. Kricket serves small plates of Indian food and cocktails made using Indian spices and herbs. The kitchen there is run by my godmother's very talented son, and having seen photo after photo of the amazing dishes at Kricket on my Instagram feed it was time for me to taste it first hand. I can't believe I'd waited so long to go (only a couple of months but in hindsight that's a long time) - as the food was utterly divine and I'm already planning a couple of return visits as soon as I'm back from my holiday.

I met caterer extraordinaire, Milli (highly recommended if you need food for weddings or large parties) at the restaurant and we ordered 5 dishes to share between us - they recommend 4 or 5 between 2 people - we obviously went for 5....

Smoked aubergine, labneh, peanut crumble and papdi - a wonderful dish - the aubergine was perfectly smoky and was great with the labneh and papdi crackers. The little pomegranate seeds added a lovely juiciness and extra texture.

Bhel puri, raw mango, tamarind, sev and yoghurt - this is a traditional Indian snack made with puffed rice. It was a lovely, light, crunchy dish and I really liked the tamarind flavour in it.

 

 

Our third dish was one of their most popular dishes, and I can see why. Samphire pakoras, chilli garlic mayonnaise and date and tamarind chutney, this was all sorts of deliciousness. The salty samphire in the crunchy batter with the potent mayo was wonderful. I love samphire anyway and this was an example of how good it can be.

 

Next up was our favourite dish of the night, and their top seller - Kricket's KFC - Keralan fried chicken, curry leaf mayonnaise, deep fried curry leaves and pickled mouli. The chicken was the tastiest fried chicken I've ever had - such juicy meat, with a perfectly delicious coating. So flavoursome that we ordered another bowl of it as soon as we'd finished the first!

The final dish was the pork belly, tamarind and apple and fennel raita. The pork had the most wonderful texture - super soft, falling apart on the inside with crispy bits on the outside that just asked to be scooped up and dunked in the raita. Another 'must order' if you go. Dishes at Kricket range from £4-8 and are all perfect for sharing.

A meal isn't really a meal without some good drinks, and I tried a couple of their cocktails. I started with the Tiki Challo - carom vodka, pear brandy and baby fennel. Such an interesting (in a good way) flavour combination. The waiter told me it tasted quite medicinal, which I didn't really taste myself - it was kind of similar to an alcoholic pear drop - a long, really refreshing drink. The other cocktail I tried was the Yellow Fairy - gin, absinthe, turmeric and egg white. It was fabulous, and strong! I loved the slightly sharp, turmeric taste of it, and as all the dishes were, it was so pretty. It's topped with a red sorrel leaf, that looks like a moth on top of the drink!

 

 

Kricket is open from midday til late Friday - Sunday, and 6pm til late Monday - Thursday, so get yourselves down there ASAP for amazing Indian food, unlike any I've tried in London before.