Temper
Visit Date: 12/01/2017
Score: 35.5/50
Soho, London W1F 0DF, UK
On a cold night in January, our first BTNDC after Christmas, a meaty, smoky, naughty affair sounded just perfect!
Temper’s menu had had all of our taste buds raring to go for a few weeks and we keen to get going… which is exactly what didn’t happen from the off. If the magic happens downstairs in the restaurant’s basement, then they need to remember to sprinkle a little fairy dust on the entrance bar upstairs…. waiting easily over 10 minutes to get served, not because it was rammed packed, but because it wasn’t organised and no one was there. After passing the time opening up our Secret Santa presents, sorry Mit I didn’t know the amount was £50!, but still they are Star Wars socks!, we finally got someone’s attention as we jokingly threatened to open and pour their wine ourselves.
Finally with glasses of red all round to go with a new BTNDC selfie, 2017 could begin.
As we were led downstairs, we were hit by a buzz and vibrancy that raised back up our hopes and expectations. With the seating arranged around the central open kitchen, we had ourselves a rather smart and comfortable side booth. This place was quickly redeeming itself.
A fairly small but enticing array of drinks and cocktails was enough to accompany the delicious sounding menu. The selection of tacos, meats, accompaniments….. wow. Couldn’t wait.
So to begin…. a healthy portion of Scotch Bonnet Nachos and at least one of every taco for the table;
Soy-Cured Beef, Crab & Pickled Onion Pork Skin, Aubergine & Chipotle Miso, Blowtorched Mackerel, Aged Cheeseburger, Beef Fat, Chipotle Miso Pork.
And the winner was…… The Nachos! Which were extremely good and spicy but not mouth burning. However, although debatable amongst us five, the tacos were underwhelming. The Aged Cheeseburger by far and away the favourite, with the others not delivering on expectations unfortunately. Ps… the Beef Fat ones…. exactly that!… fat!!
Well what cheers up 5 guys with unfulfilled expectations? Strippers!! I hear you shout?, not this time but English Pink Sparkling Wine of course!
But….. oh! The waiter couldn’t open it, still struggling… Boom!.., nearly taking Mit’s eye out and spilling half of it over the table! One might assume that they aren’t used to serving Bubbles with Manly Meat! Then, after seeing him and his boss both fail miserably at pouring it correctly, and yours truly taking over, one is left with the assumption that the meat is such the primary focus here that everything else takes a huge back seat….. well onwards and upwards to the main courses then…
Offering various cuts of chopped, smoked and grilled meat, all served together on a freshly baked bread, we reminisced about “Blacklock” and probably our finest meat feast to date…
300g portions each of the Beef, Pork, Lamb, Goat, ‘Burnt end Thai Larb’ (a South East Asian minced pork dish), and Mutton & Aged Beef Kofta were ordered, together with nearly every side, sauce and sprinkle (including 28 Burratas! as apparently they were the best ever….) Surely they couldn’t disappoint?….
Well…. it was ok…
The lamb and the beef were most people’s favourites.
The sides were the real winners. The Smacked Cucumber the table’s favourite. (Still to find out why it had been naughty?)
The Charred Gem and Grilled Corn also both amazing.
The Burratas were good but over ordered and overhyped!
At this point most of us were feeling a little let down, but I had made a note about the ‘good music’ – probably meaning that Vanilla Ice was being played, so can’t be all bad!
Blacklock had also surprised us with one of our favourite deserts to date so it was only fair we let ‘Temper’ try to win us back.
The ‘Deep Dish Brigadeiro Cookie with Condensed Milk Custard’ was unbelievably amazing. Crispy and then gooey, the texture, the Taste! Worth going just for that! So good. Easily up there in our ‘best deserts’.
Nearly as good was the ‘Butterscotch kouign amann with ice cream’. Basically a pastry with ice cream on top. Amazing deserts! Where had they come from!?
To compliment them, or, more to the point, to ruin our taste buds, we ordered the Variety and the Age Mezcal flights. But in keeping with the night to a certain extent, they had run out of the Age Flight and was swapped for the Region flight. Pure alcohol, definitely uncalled for by this point!, probably with hindsight go and have them with the deserts at the beginning to get their full value!
The tough cookie cocktail was particularly nice.
It was a decent meal but if it wasn’t for beginning a new year with good friends, and amazing deserts, it may have been a complete disappointment. Yes the menu certainly woos you and sounds down right yummy, but for meat lovers out there try Blacklocks first… give Temper a bit of time to let everything else catch up with the standard of its deserts.
London
W1F 0DF
020 3879 3834