Merci Marie is a restaurant tucked away in a building which houses studios and offices. It’s all a bit industrial but the restaurant itself is simply decorated, a wash of whites and on a Friday evening it’s filled with candles – it’s all a bit romantic.
Friday is the only evening it’s open which means the seats fill up fast. Food is mainly French (the clue is in the name), the menu changes weekly and it’s all cooked by Marie. On the evening we visited we kicked off with a rich carrot and orange soup and beautifully presented seared scallops with sweet potato puree and vanilla butter.
The super soft duck with parsnip puree and pear compote that followed was perhaps our favourite dish whilst the giant gorgonzola, walnut and chard empanada with crunchy green beans was basically a massive posh pasty – hey we didn’t say that was a bad thing.
We ended with a slab of the orange blossom cheesecake with red berry coulis and the delightful choccy fondant.
Impress the date, your family or friends by taking them to Dalston’s most secret restaurant.
Friday evenings only…
Fitzroy House, Abbot Street, London E8 3DP
www.merci-marie.com