By Kelly Beswick
The Newington Green end of Essex Road has traditionally been a bit down at heel compared to its Angel counterpart, with lots of uninspiring corner shops, greasy spoons galore and a fine line in tired looking pubs giving off distinct ‘old man boozer’ vibes. However, things have started to shift of late, with the area getting a bit of a glow up, and leading the charge is undoubtedly The Brave, a new bistro pub that occupies the site that was once home to the Engle Field, a somewhat forlorn looking hostelry that had definitely seen better days. But The Brave couldn’t be more different from its predecessor with it midnight blue exterior and bold signage setting the tone for things to come.
This is a place that is supremely confident in its identity and knows exactly what it is doing and does so in style. Indeed, this was very much in evidence from the moment we walked in and was enthusiastically greeted by our server and led to our seats. Looking around, you see that this is still very much a pub, just a handsome and very welcoming one, that also happens to have a menu that had us salivating before a morsel had even passed our lips.
Devised by executive chef James Cochran, 2018’s winner of The Great British Menu and formerly of acclaimed Islington restaurant 1251, the menu pays homage to his Scottish and Caribbean roots to stunning effect. Take the jerk chicken scotch egg and scotch bonnet jam we sampled first off from the bar snacks menu. Now I’m a scotch egg aficionado and have sampled some pretty fine specimens in my time, but this one was out of the ballpark, and as for that scotch bonnet jam, well I would happily bathe in it!
From the main menu it was suggested that we try a canapé of cheese gougères with pineapple jam, and who are we to argue. The fancy French cheese puffs duly arrived all golden and fabulously airy and were the perfect accompaniment to the crisp Sicilian orange wine we’d ordered as an aperitif.
For our mains, we decided to try one small plate, one large plate and one side, so covering all our bases. If the slow braised shin of beef with potato dumplings, miso mayonnaise and Montgomery cheddar was a small plate, what would a large one look like? Well, we soon found out when south coast scallops in tikka masala sauce, roe and coconut was set down at our table, alongside our side of grilled hispi cabbage with Caesar dressing, breadcrumbs and parmesan. Suffice to say, it was a veritable feast, with our kind server bringing us some homemade soda bread with XO butter to mop up all the delicious juices. Our plates duly cleared, we sat back fully sated, enjoying the ambience and the last of the stunning bottle of Californian Pinot Noir we’d been steered towards.
Could things get any better? Well a treacle tart with malt ice cream to share nearly tipped us over the edge, but we managed it, just. As we got up to leave, we noticed that from relatively empty, The Brave was now buzzing, with drinkers and diners alike, everyone clearly having a great time. It looks like this end of Essex Road has finally got the pub it deserves.
thebravelondon.co.uk
The Brave
340 – 342 Essex Road, Islington, London N1 3PB
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