You may have noticed the mind-bending futuristic building just off Old Street roundabout which looks like something straight out of Inception and is now home to the M by Montcalm hotel. On the ground floor is Tonic and Remedy, a new restaurant and bar set in a huge glass fronted corner with food and drink inspired by ‘18th century apothecary’, hence the name. We kicked things off in the bar area with a ‘Patience and Thyme’ (thyme-infused gin, Benedictine, raspberry and smoked egg white) and a ‘Negrhuni’, a nice twist on the classic made from gin, Aperol, vermouth and rhubarb cordial.
Over in the restaurant be sure to bag one of the tables by the windows looking down to Old Street and you can (almost) forget you’re in a hotel… The food menu features modern British dishes, we especially loved the crispy pig’s head croquettes with apple salad and the chicken caesar croquettes from the starters. We then moved on to perfectly cooked lamp rump and belly with broccoli, mash ‘n’ liquor and a lovely sea trout fillet with golden crispy skin, served with asparagus and Jersey Royals. A ‘banoffe sundae’ dessert felt quite old school compared to the other dishes but we certainly weren’t complaining about the huge dish of toffee cream and banana. With Ceviche having opened just over the road, Three Crowns already here and Bone Daddies opening soon too, this corner of Old Street is livening up and Tonic and Remedy fits in very nicely indeed.
151 – 157 City Road, London EC1Y 1BE
www.tonicandremedy.co.uk