Over an ex pub in Highbury, some seriously high level food is being served and at ‘pub’ prices’
You may not know the name Dita (until a few weeks ago it was called Dante, but then a bigger restaurant of the same name threw a hissy fit), although you may have heard of Louis Korovilas and Taylor Sessegnon-Shakespeare respectively ex chefs at Pied à Terre and Bancone.
They’ve quietly opened Dita, a restaurant in the The Islington Arts Club, once a classic old boozer a tramp’s throw from the ever-grubby Highbury tube. It’s a mystery how an area with some of the most expensive houses outside Zone 1 still lets its tube station look like such a mess. Liberals eh?
Anyhoo, the dining room is upstairs, a bit of a strain on the legs if you’re a clapped out old boomer like me, but very much worth the climb. Lovely sash windows light the small room and its cheerfully mismatched furniture and it feels friendly, even more so I imagine when evening candles come out,
You can only come in (for now) Fridays and weekends to try the high end French and Italian-inspired tasting menus that we’re told are championing whole animals and lesser-known cuts. The menu is set but changes regularly, so what I describe today may not be what you eat but, hopefully, will be equally delicious.
‘Don’t fill up on the bread’, our waiter advises us, but it’s hard not to. Three kinds, all soft and lovely with three butters. Personally I prefer my butter a bit more chilled for the ‘bite’ but otherwise I’m happy to lavishly spread this on while drinking my Bloody Mary ( Did I mention that we’re here Sunday lunchtime?)
Chalk streams are spring-fed rivers pretty much unique to England, only two hundred are known globally, 85% are here. Lucky us and lucky Paul Whitehouse who, I believe, bought one of his own to fish in. The water is clean, cold and packed with nutrients which feed the insects that go into the trout, one of which has been used to make our first dish, a mousse served with a rich ‘Tottenham Plum’ sauce and a wonderfully light kind of Gnocco fritto
I have no idea what a Tottenham Plum is, perhaps it’s a footballing term, but it’s very good. The mousse is outstanding. Thick enough to stand a spoon up in, it coats the tongue in an all embracing way and makes you slow down to enjoy every last bit. Salty trout egg caviar pops lasciviously against the creaminess.What little bread I have managed to not already eat comes in useful to wipe the bowl clean.
I’ve never gone a bundle on polenta served straight, but next we get goat meat coated in polenta and deep fried. This really makes polenta ideal for me. The perfectly fried exterior gives way to tender, flavour-forward shredded meat which is complimented by ‘turnip’ that has been sliced as thin as can be and pickled with kosho, a Japanese condiment made with fermented yuzu to add gentle acidity to set off the meat.
Something else Italian that can be a big fail in my book is gnocchi. So often gluey and depressing, these little balls of flour, potato and egg need to be made by someone with a delicate hand.
Here excellent examples are served coated in gloriously green tarragon butter and flecked with super fresh crab. On top is a perfectly pan-fried scallop that’s only briefly been introduced to searing heat so as to be properly caramelised outside and fresh and almost raw within. A great dish.
Today’s dessert is a PB&J Ice Cream Sando, PB &J, standing for peanut butter and jelly, while Sando is Australian for sandwich. Of course it’s a lot classier than it sounds with the icecream artfully swirled and the jelly dobbed over like jewels on a crown. It’s a sharing plate, which gets messy rather quickly and we tussle a bit over the last scrapings.
And it’s not over, a bowl of mini Roibuss donuts is lovely. Gently infused with the flavour of rooibos tea and lightly sugared, each one is a mini treat, ideal with coffee, which we can’t have as the restaurant has no facilities. Odd that, they could at least borrow a Nespresso machine or something similar, I do like to end on a strong coffee.
I don’t like to end on a low note though, everything else (apart from the rather intrusive music) was top hole. The price is right too. Recommended.
www.ditaldn.co.uk
Upstairs, at Islington Arts Club 235 Upper St, N1 1RU
Friday 7pm – 11pm
Saturday 7pm – 11pm
Sunday 12pm – 4pm