Foley's

Experimental flavours

Spiced sweet potato fritters, grilled pineapple, cured red onions,
saffron coconut curry

Fusion cooking is tricky one to get right, not many restaurants in the UK manage to pull it off but I have great hope that the newly launched Foley's in Fitzrovia, that it would deliver something fun and imaginative. With an ex Palomar chef in charge of the kitchen, Foley's is all about contemporary style with flavour profiles taken from around the world which you can clearly see from its menu. There are plenty of Asian, Middle Eastern elements to Southern American and European's. The dishes are sharing sizes so you can treat it as a tapas meal and have about 3 - 5 dishes per person. 

Cornflake crusted popcorn chicken, pickled shimeji,
corn, endive, chorizo

Grilled octopus, black sesame mayo, spicy pork mince,
peanuts, bok choy, housemade sriracha

Sticky beef, daikon cucumber som tam,
avo & kaffir lime purée, crispy shallots

The cornflake crusted popcorn chicken was a strange one for me, it clearly lacked seasoning and I felt there were too much crunchy element such as the corn and endive, the chorizo was too powerful on the other hand which resulted in somewhat an imbalance dish. The sticky beef was a lot better and the coolness of the mild cucumber som tam and kaffir lime purée offered a great contrast to the richness of the meat. The tender lamb rump was perhaps the least ambitious dish but yet it was also the best dish on the day, it was very Greek in style with a light hummous and feta. The grilled octopus had the best flavours combination, the sweet and nutty profile of the black sesame mayo worked like a treat with the spicy pork mince and the moist octopus, my only criticism was the octopus which could have been fresher.

Hake, tamarind, fennel, coconut, crispy chickpeas,
okra, coriander, kale

Lamb rump, confit belly, herb hummous,
spiced peppers, cornbread, feta, dukkah

"Fatboy Elvis" chocolate chip banana cake

Foley's is an interesting one, most of the dishes are very experimental with so many elements which can be confusing. I felt a few of the dishes would have been a lot better if they take out some of the garnishes and focus more on the main ingredients to make it more settle and refine. The kitchen clearly has talent and  I admire the brave and bold approach to come up with something unusual and creative. The services is a little chaotic on my visit, with orders left forgotten and serving us wrong dishes, but it is still early days. Foley's could only get better from the learning and insight they gather from its soft launch period.

Food 2.5/5

What I paid: 
£21 per head

Average cost without drinks and services:
£30

23 Foley Street, Fitzrovia, London W1W 6DU

http://foleysrestaurant.co.uk/