If you love your meat, you’ll love Bones: a brand new all day restaurant from Joff and Simeon Goodman, the guys behind the fabulous organic and fairtrade store, The Grocery.
From rotisserie fare through to sharing dishes, organic wines and creative cocktails, East London eatery Bones has left no stone unturned in their quest for perfection, with a clear commitment to the quality and taste of its produce. Head Chef, Simeon, a self-confessed country boy whose mother is a professional chef, trained under The Lavender House’s Richard Hughes in Norfolk and has created a menu of modern dishes that simply let the ingredients do the talking.
SKIN & BONES
Championing ‘Bones’ – defined by owners Joff and Simeon Goodman as ‘any meat on any bone’ – diners can choose from just picked, pulled or plucked fare to tear & share. ‘Bones’ include the signature Label Anglais free-range rotisserie chicken – the star of the show and enjoyed whole, halved or quartered – together with oversized T-bone steaks through to roasted racks of lamb and confit duck legs, to name but a few of the cuts on offer.
Those who suffer from food envy fear not, for a selection of dishes to share are the perfect grazing antidote to greed of the green-eyed variety. Divide and conquer a range of plates including the Tuscan panzanella salad with tomato, roasted red onions, croutons and garlic, the sautéed baby squid and potatoes with chilli, baby tomatoes and lemon or macaroni cheese with leeks. Sure to pack a punch are hearty homemade stews such as the alicuit – an occitane peasant stew made from the whole chicken and pearl barley – or the mixed-bean hotpot with hot-smoked paprika and lime. Seasonal and locally sourced, the dishes coming out of the kitchen use minimum ingredients for maximum taste.
Lighter bites include crispy pigs’ ears with tartare sauce; pan-fried skate wing with olive tapenade and toasted hazelnuts, pigeon breast salad and chicken livers with Oloroso sherry and smoked paprika, dishes worthy of a reservation alone.
Sweet teeth won’t be disappointed, either: the raspberry and black cherry cheesecake or the rich chocolate and hazelnut torte send diners on a soaring sugar rush, whilst the cheese board includes aged Pecorino, Testun in woodash and Bianco Sottobosco with white and black truffle provides the perfect finish.
LAZY BONES
Breakfast and brunch are big at Bones, too. Lazy days are positively encouraged with options for both: start the day off right with the likes of organic free-range eggs-any-way served on sourdough toast with additional bacon, smoked salmon or avocado; light and fluffy bircher muesli pancakes dowsed in maple syrup; giant fish finger sandwiches on wholemeal bread; tender minute steak with fries; or the doorstop-sized Bones Club with warm chicken and bacon. With brunch out of the way, thoughts turn to the afternoon – and what better way to embrace the day with a ‘pick-me-up’ signature Bloody Mary, laced with chilli and rosemary infused vodka, tomato juice and a few secrets ingredients.
BREWS & BONES
But man cannot live on bones alone. Cocktails are as creative as the cuisine with a selection of stylish sips that include the Monks Habit – Havana light rum, Frangelico, Cointreau and pineapple juice – the Asian Provocateur – vodka, lemongrass, lime, lychee juice and chilli – and the Everyday Tea, made with Little Bird Gin, Earl Grey, fresh lemon and sugar syrup. The comprehensive European wine list - both by the bottle and glass, and mostly organic - caters for every taste, occasion and budget, alongside a healthy range of artisan beers from Redwell Pale Ale and Samuel Smith, leaving nobody dry.
BRICKS & BONES
Set on two floors, against bare-brick walls and low-pendant lighting, the understated design creates the ideal setting from morning till midnight. Downstairs, the 45-seater space is the perfect place for a private party, hire an area or the whole space for anything from birthdays to launches and leaving-dos. Bones will create a special party menu just for you.
BONES TO PICK WITH YOU
From breakfast and dinner through to weekend brunches and lazy, stay-a-while Sunday lunches, Bones is fast becoming a favourite with those who eat meat – whether braised, racked or stewed. With a reputation for second-to-none produce, Bones is a glorious showcase of what the Goodman brothers can do with the stock that lines its shelves.
Everything tastes better with Bones.
52 Kingsland Road, London, E2 8DP
Tel: 020 7003 9008 / Twitter: @BonesRestaurant / Facebook