Featuring weekly changing menus, a specially-curated wine selection, and a cosy setting, Quality Wines is helmed by chef Nick Bramham and the sibling site to The Quality Chop House. Located in Clerkenwell, the neighbourhood wine bar keeps its ever-changing blackboard full of Mediterranean-inspired small plates.
The restaurant itself is on the small side, but there is also a delightful outdoor seating area if the London weather obliges. Simply decorated with wooden furniture, yellow lighting and candles, large windows, and of course wine bottles on the walls, Quality Wines eminates the feeling of a friendly French brasserie. There is also a large table available if you want to bring a big group and try out the Chef's Menu together.
Because of the ever-changing nature of the menu, it is impossible to exactly predict what you'll be getting if you book weeks in advance. However, Bramham writes up a new menu on the blackboard once a week and posts it on the restaurant's Instagram and sends it out on their mailing list. Past options for dinner include a tuna melt with José Gourmet tuna, red Leicester, gruyere, and provolone; lamb ‘Osso Buco’ with lentils, potatoes, and salsa verde; or agretti, in an anchovy and garlic dressing with mozzarella di bufala. There is also a charcuterie and snack selection, as well as dessert, which usually takes the form of the restaurant's famous pig fat cannolo, stuffed with your choice of Tahitian vanilla, Pump Street chocolate, or hazelnut filling.
And of course the name hints at the wide selection of wines here, of which the by-glass choices change daily. Bottles can also be puchased from the shelves for a £15 'drink in' corkage fee. If you really love what you're drinking, keep in mind that this spot is open seven days a week as a wine shop, and offers a selection of stock on its website for nationwide delivery.