Brigade Bar & Bistro (London Bridge)

• What Brigade offers is a long term solution
• We in the West are privileged
• Not everybody is so fortunate
• So what on earth does this have to do with a restaurant review
• Brigade bar and bistro is a social enterprise which trains and supports jobless and homeless people
• Equipping them with kitchen skills
• Don't be fooled into thinking that the skills these apprentices are taught are somehow sub standard
• Or that the food is processed to cut costs or that you're eating here out of charity
• Brigade is what you might call high end but with a relaxed and casual feel
• The group of fellow writers I dined with had similarly positive experiences with their dishes and were also enamoured by the venue and principles that underpin it
• I piled into South Coast seafood cocktail topped with Cromer crab and Chase vodka sauce which was nothing short of excellent
• The seafood was exquisitely fresh and lightly shredded
• Layered on a base of smooth and light dressing with a subtle edge of creaminess
• The main I chose the 10 oz ribeye with watercress salad
• I had a craving and boy was I glad for that craving
• ) and washed it all down with a stunning Argentinian Malbec
• Last but not least was the sweetener
• The flavours were divine and presentation excellent
• If I had one tiny criticism of the entire meal and experience it was simply that this dish was a little too sweet for my tooth and the jelly could have been more concentrated
• You can feel good about eating at Brigade as you are helping to fund a charity that provides apprenticeships to the homeless
• Good acoustics but the room is very bright
• It would have felt more intimate if bulbs were a little dimmer
• A star of the dish was the parsley salad which contained sweet shards of pickled shallots
• They were magicians with this cut managing to serve it rare and tender
• When I complained that the dish needed a sauce the waiter suggested the blue cheese butter which is made accompany another dish
• Chips looked beautiful but I was not keen on the texture

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