The popular Shoreditch wine bar now has a bigger home on Brick Lane
Oranj, the natural wine bar on Bacon Street, has served up some great guest chef residencies over the past three years. But now it’s entering a new era with a move to a new site, just down the road on Dray Walk (next to Rough Trade). And it’s not just the venue that’s changing – Oranj now has its first Culinary Director in Yuto Fujimoto, who twice appeared as guest chef at the original spot. The new site is much bigger (it used to be the Big Chill back in the day) but still keeps some of that industrial feel that Oranj was known for, with a small open kitchen and large antique zinc bar bar at the back.
Eat This
We were there on opening night in mid-October and can happily recommend starting with big hunks of bread served with burnt apple butter, as well as the Cantabrian anchovies, glistening under a drizzle of ham fat and olive oil.
Other early favourites included the grilled oyster mushrooms, with cured egg yolk and duck fat, and the charred leeks with bottarga and black vinegar sauce. Gnocchi came in an absolutely mega sage brown butter and cep mushroom sauce – but the gnocchi themselves were sadly a bit overdone. Very forgivable for the first night however, and our other main of grilled trout, brussel sprouts and morels was spot on.
Don’t miss the excellent sides either, including the chips with chipotle mayo and the fresh green salad dressed with super sharp calamansi.
Drink This
As you’d expect, there’s a great selection of natural, low intervention wines on offer, curated by founder Jasper Delamothe. The selection will change regularly but we especially enjoyed the Funambul Brut Nature pet nat from Enter Vinyes, on our visit.
Why Go
There are actually surprisingly few natural wine bars down Shoreditch way, so the new Oranj location is welcome news indeed. You can rock up for a full dinner or just a couple of snacks and a few glasses – and in the summer there’s lots of outdoor seating too. A great addition to the area.
Note: Yuto Fujimoto is no longer involved with Oranj
Key Information
Address | 2 Dray Walk, London E1 6NJ
For more information | @oranjwine
