Typing Room

Edgy modernism

Typing room is the new restaurant on the former site of Viajante in the Town Hall Hotel. When it was announced that Nuno Mendes was to leave Viajante and join Andre Balazs's multi million project Chiltern Firehouse back in February, the Town Hall Hotel wasted no time to appoint Lee Westcott to take over the space with the backing of restaurateur Jason Atherton. Lee Westcott used to worked at 22 Ships (A tapas bar by Jason) in Hong Kong and it has become one of the hottest places to eat out.

Typing Room

bread

crispy fish skin, chicken wings &
courgette and basil profiteroles

Typing Room's space was almost identical to Viajante, the open kitchen remained and the layout of the restaurant was more or less the same. The menu however was totally different, you have a choice of ALC as well as a short tasting menu. We opted for the tasting menu and started off with some well crafted snacks, the chicken wing drumstick was moist and finely seasoned, tasting great with the creamy garlic and potato moose. The bread here was freshly baked and served with two types of very interesting butter and I found the chicken skin butter was absolutely top notch with its rich and savoury taste.

mackerel, passion fruit, burnt cucumber & radish

raw beef, smoked beetroot, turnip, horseradish & sorrel

seabass, heritage tomato, courgette & squid

The mackerel was another creative dish of pairing with passion fruit to offer sourness as well as a well balanced body of fresh fruity notes. The cucumber and radish gave a refreshing crisp texture and overall it was a well executed dish. The lamb with smoked aubergine was the best dish on the day, the wild garlic and yoghurt instantly reminded me of Greek cooking. The lamb itself was rich and moist with the sweet onion and the earthy tone of the aubergine really enhancing the beautifully cooked lamb. Dessert of strawberry with pistachio and white chocolate was a real delight, the clean and fruity taste from the strawberry went exceptionally great with the crunchy pistachio and creamy chocolate.

lamb, smoked aubergine, wild garlic, yoghurt & onions

basil sorbet

strawberry, pistachio & white chocolate

Overall it was very interesting experience. It had lots of modern techniques with colourful and stylish presentation, also a great deal of Mediterranean influence which was light and refreshing. It was a different beast to Viajante but quality wise it wasn't far off. From a price point of view it was pretty good value for money at £55 per person for the tasting menu. Typing Room is a very welcoming addition to the London high end dining scene, I am sure given the time it will only get better and I am keen to return in the future.

Food 6.5
Service 7
Ambience 6
Value 6

£65 per head with 1 glass of wine

Patriot Square, Bethnal Green, London, E2 9NF

http://www.typingroom.com/