Lengthy-lived isn’t all the time the identical factor as top-notch
The one factor extra unusual than a long-lived restaurant in London is a long-lived restaurant that’s nonetheless on the high of its culinary recreation. The Begging Bowl has been buying and selling in Peckham since 2012 which is kind of the achievement in a restaurant market that tends, as an entire to, worth superficial newness over every thing else.
Longevity doesn’t essentially equate to high quality, although. Native eating places can usually be favoured and lionised by the locals, no matter whether or not they’re truly any good or not – as anybody who has ever tried to criticise Camberwell’s Silk Street can attest.
The Begging Bowl isn’t simply one other native restaurant, although. A few of London’s post-credit crunch wave of reenergised Thai eating places can both straight or not directly hint their lineages again to this eatery because it helped popularise Thai meals in London that consisted of extra than simply coconut milk and off-the-shelf curry paste.
Starters and facet dishes at Begging Bowl
‘Larb-spiced’ nuts had been, in some methods, a style of what was to return – a group of fatty l’il thirst-inducers, however solely mildly moreish and calmly spiced at greatest.
A crunchy and tartly bitter number of pickled greens had been let down solely by the meek chilli brine.
Agency and dense slivers of patridge got here nestled in a refreshing salad, the entire thing wearing a tangy, calmly bitter sauce.
Chive desserts had a texture considerably harking back to taro/turnip cake with a crisp mantle giving method to a squidgy fluffiness. These little patties had their distinct charms although – a chewy softness alongside that fluffiness, replete with the distinctive style of chives.
Miangs of ginger, peanut, shallot, coconut, galangal and palm sugar, blended up and served on betel leaf, might have been small in measurement. However they packed a robust presence – candy, fiery, tangy and nutty, all in a single mouthful.
A trio of greens – Jerusalem artichoke, palm coronary heart advert leeks – wasn’t love at first chew, however its charms slowly grew on me. The smoky fleshiness of the artichoke and the slight chewiness of the leeks was made even higher by the sunshine muskiness and umami of the skinny broth, in addition to by a splash of distinctive dill.
The enchantment of a bowl of stir-fried mussels lay not within the molluscs themselves which had been wan, runtish morsels. The skinny broth on the backside of the bowl was much more attention-grabbing, the place the distinctive sharpness of galangal jostled with the aroma of candy basil for my consideration. Though the boldness of each quickly light after a number of spoonfuls, it was a sensual expertise whereas it lasted.
A salad of beans, prawns, puntarelle and cashews was a delightfully multifaceted affair. No mouthful was precisely the identical as some other, encompassing sweetness, nuttiness, tanginess and muskiness. The shrug-inducing comfortable boiled egg was the one disappointing ingredient.
Regardless of allegedly being graced with chilli, turmeric and lemongrass, the pork larb wasn’t wherever as fatty or as spicy because it ought to’ve been to be a real success.
Mains at Begging Bowl
Stir-fried venison was barely idenitifable as such. Whereas removed from inedible, with slices starting from tender to mildly dense, all of it made for a slightly bland, forgettable dish. The onions and brown color elevated its resemblance to an average-quality beef ho enjoyable, however with out the noodles.
A curry of beef and candy potato was a greater demonstration of the kitchen’s capability with meat. The tender squidginess of the meat was matched by the yielding squishiness of onions. The 2, together with chunks of candy potato, had been certain collectively by a muskily moreish sauce that reminded Norfolk Dumpling of a massaman.
Deep-fried entire sea bass got here offered in a fashion that may solely be described as battered taxidermy. Norfolk Dumpling and I had been divided on this presentation, however united in our appreciation of its manifold charms. The gently chewy pores and skin was nearly like jerky. It simply gave method to reveal gleaming seams of white flesh that sheaved off the bone with little effort. The sticky tamarind-based sauce clung to every thing, together with our fingers, imparting an ideal steadiness of sweetness and sourness, whereas extant tamarind and kumquat items added occasional bursts of extra sweetness.
Som tam fritters sound subversively Caledonian, however this was an nearly Japanese-like show of inventive deep frying. The sunshine dusting of batter was gently crisp, segueing nearly seamlessly into the velvety reeds of inexperienced papaya beneath. The nutty crunch and delicate chilli kick of the peanuts and lengthy beans respectively may’ve been stronger, however the warmth was helped alongside modestly so by by a nam pla prik-style garnish sauce.
I’m unsure what was extra misconceived concerning the duck leg dish – selecting lean duck leg over fatty duck breast, or grazing it with an apologetically meek ‘5 Spice’ rub. There was some pleasure available right here, from the tender meat to the delicate umami of the skinny broth, the latter helped alongside considerably by shiitake. Nevertheless it was all far too fleeting.
Desserts at Begging Bowl
Dollops of condensed milk ice-cream had been surprisingly dense. Easy and freed from errant ice crystals, every gulp introduced an addictive mouth-coating creamy richness.
Som chun was a bit like a cross between a slushie and a fruit salad. Superb-grained crushed ice got here sweetened with a primary sugar syrup. Crunchy shallots would’ve added extra character, however there wasn’t sufficient of them, with that job resting on the plump, squishy lychees as an alternative. Younger inexperienced mango was there for crispness slightly than sweetness. Whereas refreshing and nice sufficient, it didn’t fairly work as a singular entire, needing one thing to bind all of the disparate components collectively.
No prizes for guessing which of the images on this evaluation had been taken with an iffy-quality borrowed digicam cellphone.
Banana fritters benefited from crunchy, reasonably thick batter, the curlices of which had been free from extra oil. However the un-aged fruit lacked caramelisation, as did the tamarind caramel on the facet. The turmeric custard was skinny in each style and texture. I actually needed to like this dessert given the standard of the deep-fried batter, however in the long run the love solely went pores and skin deep.
The Verdict
Regardless of having fun with a number of dishes from the ever altering menu at The Begging Bowl throughout a number of visits, I really feel oddly underwhelmed by the general expertise. The kitchen’s overly restrained use of the wealthy Thai pantheon of herbs and spices, for no matter purpose, now feels extra outmoded and stunted than ever earlier than. Whereas not each dish in any given meal needs to be a firecracker, consuming at The Begging Bowl nonetheless feels far more sedate and languid than, say, Singburi or Farang.
Whereas there’s nonetheless a lot to take pleasure in right here, it does really feel as if The Begging Bowl has been eclipsed by its successors, offspring and competitors. Maybe that’s not such a foul destiny, to be outshone by a technology you helped encourage.
Title: The Begging Bowl
Handle: 168 Bellenden Street, Peckham, London SE15 4BW
Cellphone: 020 7635 2627
Net: https://thebeggingbowl.co.uk/
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Thursday 18.00-22.00, Friday-Saturday noon-14.30 and 17.00-22.00. Sunday noon-15.30. Closed Monday.
Reservations: extremely advisable the nearer you get to the weekend.
Common value for one particular person, together with comfortable drinks and repair cost, when shared between two: £40-50 approx.
Ranking: ★★★☆☆
