The Barbary Next Door
Covent Garden, London
You’ll find it in the alleyway leading into Neal’s Yard, a tiny corridor of a restaurant seperated from big brother The Barbary by a dividing wall. It’s a reworking of what used to be Jacob The Angel, courtesy of the folk behind The Palomar. The format is counter seating only (some bookable, some reserved for walk-ins) with engaged, friendly servers giving good advice on the brief menu of bright North African and Middle Eastern small plates. Begin with bread, perhaps a pillowy, sesame-strewn Afghan khobz served piping hot from the oven with matbucha – a sweet-spicy dip of red peppers, tomato paste, smoked paprika, chilli, olive oil and garlic. Follow with a fresh, crunchy Turkish cucumber salad and a dish of slow-cooked lamb, tender and sweet, accompanied by a heap of salt, cumin and a small bowl of labneh for added flavour. Otherwise, try a warming butter bean stew with smoked paprika or lubina chermoullah (sea bass with coriander, chilli, garlic and preserved lemon). After that, sfenj – a light Maghrebi doughnut, sprinkled with sugar and served with a melted chocolate dip – is a deeply satisfying, if filling, finish. The wine list opens at £33 with a better-than-average French Gamay and a Sicilian Inzolia.
