Tony Conigliaro is a legend in the drinks world, and his
bar with no name, set on an Islington backstreet has been serving some of London’s most creative and inspiring cocktails for the best part of five years.
His next step sees him make a foray into the world of food, as the bar, affectionately known as 69 Colebrooke Row, has launched a bar food menu for the first time. And as you might expect from a
bar that makes casual use of clarified tomato juice lightly set to resemble an egg yolk, and adds Guinness reduction and homemade horseradish-infused vodka to drinks, this is no ordinary bar menu.
‘Originally we were thinking of creating food pairings that matched with specific cocktails, but we decided we wanted it to be more free and loose - to match the spirit of the bar. The result is a
menu of light bites which we’ve tied in by incorporating a lot of the same techniques that we use to make the cocktails,’ explained Zoe Burgess who is head of research & development at Tony
Conigliaro’s development centre, The Drinks Factory and the driving force behind this new menu. ‘Like our drinks list, many of the dishes are creative takes on classics.’
Some highlights from the menu:
Melon ++
Strips of melon which have been ‘compressed’ with juices in a vac-pack machine so that they take on new flavours. Included are strips flavoured with ham stock, so as to resemble that classic
partner of melon, parma ham.
Quail Egg Snack
The poshest egg mayonnaise sandwich you’re ever likely to eat, made with quail eggs, mustard mayonnaise and caviar.
Tomato Tartare
Tomato, buffalo mozzarella and olive water gel combine to create dish that resembles steak tartare in its meaty taste and appearance.
Beef Sandwich
Thinly-sliced beef on fingers of pumpernickel bread with chive mayonnaise and micro-herbs.
Dishes shown left, in the same order as mentioned above.
Published 9 April 2014.