Solis

Solis is another lustrous, plump feather in Arcade Battersea’s very feathery cap, as Arcade continues to build the Power Station into a genuine food destination in London. The restaurant is named after 16th century explorer Juan Diaz de Solis, and if you enter the Power Station on the wrong side as we did, you may yourself feel like an explorer as you wander around its vast brick halls, searching for the entrance. It’s actually not hard to find - the giant ‘Solis’ sign out front is a helpful clue.

As London’s restaurant landscape becomes more densely populated, most restaurants are becoming more complex and convoluted to try and stand out. Solis is the reverse - it reclines blissfully in its simplicity. Aside from a few snacks, the menu really revolves around two items - a grilled half chicken brushed in smoky chilli oil, and a flat iron steak doused in Solis’ special steak sauce. Both are available with or without chips, and at £15 or £20 respectively, they seem like natural competition for Nandos, which is just around the corner.

This is more or less where the comparisons end because Solis is damn good. The fries are superb - crispy and well seasoned; the chicken has a lovely golden sheen and a gentle spice to it, and the steak - so often a little tough and chewy when offered at an affordable cost - is juicy and tender. If that steak sauce reminds you of queue-tastic London steakhouse L’Entrecote, have a gold star - this one is very similar and frankly, just as good.

Solis nails the rest of the menu too, whether it’s the spicy tuna devilled eggs, some outstanding beef croquetas, highly quaffable sangrias, or the Insta-bait torta de queso, with its dense creamy filling and a blueberry sauce that is just sharp enough for the cutting. Solis doesn’t do a lot but what it does, it absolutely nails bang on the head. We just wish every shopping centre in the country had a restaurant as good as this.

As if the food offering at Battersea Power Station wasn’t stacked enough, also entering the fray is Solis - a restaurant serving grilled chicken and steak alongside beers and cocktails. Solis is the creation of chefs Ana Goncalves and Zijun Meng, who met whilst working for Nuno Mendes at Viajante and Chiltern Firehouse, before launching the beloved TaTa Eatery and now, Solis.

The restaurant is named after Juan Diaz de Solis - a 16th century explorer who is believed to have been the first European to reach modern day Uruguay. The restaurant takes influences from both ends of that voyage, marrying Spanish and South American flavours.

The restaurant design is bistro-like, with blue and white chequered tablecloths draped over the tables and sleek tiled walls featuring vintage photographs and posters. At one end of the restaurant there’s a long open kitchen, complete with stools and spots for counter diners.

The menu kicks off with para picar nibbles - gildas, croquetas and grilled corn halves with crema dressing. The main event is either chicken or steak, grilled and served with your choice of sauces (options include peppery steak sauce, mojo verde and smoky aji aji). If you can find a bit of room, finish the meal off with Solis’ signature torta de queso cheesecake with berry sauce.

Solis offers a grilled chicken kids meal as well so little ones aren’t left out here. Meanwhile on the drinks front you’ll find a range of refreshing sangrias available by the glass or the jug, as well as some bottled beers, a compact list of wines, and house cocktails like the Sevilla Negroni (Tanqueray Flor de Sevilla gin, Antica Formula vermouth, Campari and orange).