22-11-2016
It’s called Black Axe Mangal and it was opened by Lee Tiernan (in the photo by Adrian Lourie) who for many years was head chef at St. John Bread & Wine in Spitalfields: a florescent dining room, very loud metal music and very interesting dishes, with a strong focus on leavened products. At 156, Canonbury Road, in Highbury & Islington
Dear readers, please excuse me. For years Identità Golose has taught me to eat in lovely places, where good food also implied an attentive and polite service; in which the taste of the chef could be appreciated not only in the food but also in the furniture. What do I mean? Am I about to recommend a place you should avoid, with badly mannered waiters and imperfect food? Of course not. In fact, the contrary: Black Axe Mangal is, in 2016, my favourite restaurant in London; but with terms. If you visit, leave your formal attire at home and be ready to have fun without thinking that you’re dining at a restaurant.
In this small place on the Highbury & Islington roundabout, the music is metal and it’s so loud you can hear it from the street; the dining room is decorated with florescent colours and skateboards; in the open view kitchen a stone oven stands out, with silkscreen images of the Kiss. Should these small details be enough not to visit B.A.M., it would be an unforgivable mistake, because Lee Tiernan has created something incredible. Lee made himself known in London by working for many years as head chef at St. John Bread & Wine in Spiltafield, on Commercial Street. When he left, everyone expected him to open a new place, but nobody would imagine what this anarchic creative chef had in mind.
Salted sea urchins, squid ink bread and baked egg yolk (photo credits Eater London)
Lee is a master of fermentation. Bread is just one example. The recipes served at B.A.M. all have a component that wakes up the palate. Unusual flavours, inspired by cultures from all around the world, from the Middle to the Far East. It is with these sour flavours that Lee contrasts the powerful taste of the fire. Fire and fermentations make this a unique place, where everyone should come at least once to understand how food can acquire illogical shape even without the use of sophisticated equipment.
Simone Tondo of restaurant Tondo in Paris, at Black Axe MAngal on the occasion of Gelinaz!
The delicateness of the quail is balanced by the mix of spices that’s typical of B.A.M. the mission Chinese spice, a mix of Sichuan pepper and other berries that daze the palate. There’s little harm if for once you won’t wear a shirt. If, on the other hand, there’s no way you can tolerate metal, the restaurant is open for brunch at the weekend from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the playlist is much more melodic. What’s important is that you come. The flavours are so delicious it’s likely you’ll forget everything else and let yourself succumb to the enthusiasm. See also Black Axe Mangal on the Identità Guide
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A media professional divided between Paris, London and Tokyo. He writes about restaurants as an excuse to speak about many more things