MNKY HSE is a superbly fun restaurant that serves seriously amazing food. The fun starts as soon as you walk in and feast your eyes on the cool outfits the staff are wearing. I'm not sure if they have theme nights, but last night was very much about gypsy chic! Every staff member is beautiful and well turned out, but not so much that my friends and I felt out of place. The venue itself is as polished as the people working there, really up market and every detail has been covered off. There are plenty of round tables, perfect for big groups, and you're kind of crammed in, which sounds terrible but it adds to the intimacy of the evening.
If you fancy hiding away, ask for one of the tables towards the back, and feel like you're eating in a secret tunnel alway from the masses. Continuing the fun theme, every place setting comes complete with a cute little monkey toy. They're cute, cheeky, and they have curly tails, perfect for hooking over your cocktail glass. After taking photos of our glasses covered in monkeys, we popped our new friends into our bags to take home to the boyfriends...cute!
There are plenty of delicious cocktails to sink; the menu is full of the classics, but also some with a twist with unusual flavours. I found the cocktails yummy. They are made with premium spirits, loads of flavour and certainly no scrimping on the booze!
The food here is something else, in fact, even though i've been horribly hung over today, I haven't been able to get the food out of my head. It's tapas sized, yet enough to order a load and share. Here's a few must-orders!:
Sashimi peppers: make sure you order a couple of bowls of these, and I recommend the spicy ones. They're perfect for munching on whist enjoying drinks. it's also like a game of pepper roulette, as one in ten sashimi peppers is naturally spicy, it's just how they are.
Sirloin with chimichuri: This is goooood! Sooo tasty! perfectly cooked, well seasoned and impeccably presented.
Baby chicken: I didn't try this, but everyone who did LOVED it.
Black cod: Amazing, so light and it separates into perfect creamy white flakes. Again, well seasoned and really fresh.
You cant go wrong with any of the food, unless you're a vegan, in which case options are very limited so perhaps reconsider, or just go along for cocktails and monkey fun.
Minimum order value for food is a hefty £87pp, or at least it was for our booking, so do check this as it could be an unwelcome surprise if you're not expecting it. Wine is expensive too, but the house wine is lovely. Sauvignon Blanc for white fans, and a really good Malbec for steak lovers.
Service is good, although my steak was delivered to the table 20 minutes after everyone else's mains, but the staff were more than happy to throw a bottle of wine in free of charge to make up for it, so no grumbles.
Overall, a restaurant I highly recommend; definitely worth having packed lunches for a month to save up for,