Flesh and Buns, 41 Earlham St, WC2H 9LX
Meal for two with a cocktail: £60
The eagerly-anticipated sister to Bone Daddies, Flesh and Buns brings another little slice of Tokyo to London in the form of a hipster izakaya. It's vast and buzzing, with booths for groups and long tables to share. It's also not quite ready to be open, or at least it wasn't last Friday. The food is competent but not exceptional. The staff are charming but they lack experience. Given a few weeks or months, it may just be perfect. In the meantime, there is a risk that, like us, you'll leave feeling unsatisfied.
Oysters, which were fat and fresh, came with an excellent, zingy jalapeno sauce. The pork belly was tender and moist, its mustard sauce a happy blend of astringent and sweet. But the duck confit was underwhelming, the skin could have been crispier and the meat softer. And there weren't enough buns or salad for hungry people. When we asked, we were told about their 2-bun policy in a manner that implied we were greedy and totally missing the point of their fabulous new concept. Perhaps we were, but being made to feel stupid by the same team that had earlier struggled to bring our drinks without spilling them left us feeling like mugs.
Given time, they'll surely iron these things out. At the heart of Flesh and Buns is a strong concept and there's much to recommend it. But our experience was marred by a slightly stingy and condescending attitude that was not conducive to a happy experience. Not recommended yet.
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