Morchella, Clerkenwell summer BBQ review

Morchella (meaning Morel in Spanish) is a standout modern Mediterranean restaurant located just off Exmouth Market with an abundance of dining options and just a stone’s throw from Sadlers Wells. It is a buzzing area loved by locals and worth travelling to for Londoners and surprisingly not all that well known by tourists. For a restaurant named after a mushroom there aren’t many featured on the menu, but fear not, there are plenty of dishes here to have you returning here over and over again.

The restaurant’s constantly evolving seasonal menu is a key part of its appeal, encouraging repeat visits from London’s restaurant enthusiasts with their reputation built on well loved staples that return to the menu frequently. Catch them when you can - the spanakopita, the salt cod churros and the spaghetti vongole.

Image credit Morchella, Clerkenwell

Being in a former bank building means the dining room is graced by high ceilings and plenty of space for a long open kitchen with counter seats to watch all the action and wonderful sense of spaciousness with an abundance of daylight from the big windows. The ambiance is broughtdown to earth from its banking grandeur and given warmth with half height wooden paneling on the walls and natural herringbone wooden floors. To the side is a small but well stocked wine bar offering largely natural and biodynamic options.

The tables and chairs have a simple aesthetic, each with a hidden drawer for the menus, serviettes and cutlery.  For our FLO London subscribers there is some art to be enjoyed here while you dine. In partnership with Gerrish Fine you will find a selection of paintings and prints by sixties visionary Gordon House a painter, printmaker and graphic designer who is internationally recognized for his dynamic compositions that feature clean geometric shapes, sharp lines, grids and distinctive colour and who happens to be the grandfather of Morchella’s Executive Chef Ben Marks. There is more art on view downstairs near their intimate private dining room.

Morchella, Clerkenwell. Image credit MTotoe/ FLO London

Currently Morchella is celebrating the restaurants suppliers with a BBQ menu that will continue through the summer spotlighting their produce with daily changing fish and shellfish.

We went along to try their BBQ menu on a very very hot day. Arriving to see the Asado grill style BBQ outside by the terrace stoked and ready to go was enticing but we had second thoughts about sitting on the terrace. Having grown up in Singapore and my dining companion in Ghana, we figured we could brave the heat. We stubbornly took our seats turning down the offer of sitting inside with only slight regret. I only needed to desperately break out my handheld fan a couple of times. We easily forgot about the heat with our first Aperol of the day and even more so when the dishes arrived.

Morchella, Clerkenwell. Image credit MTotoe/ FLO London

The BBQ special menu of five items supplements the main menu. We started with two thick juicy scallops in their shells sitting on a Pil Pil sauce, so good you will want to order some bread to mop it up. The sweetcorn is a must order. Taken to the next level with a generous coating of crab and chilli butter. I marvelled at what a genius idea this was as we nibbled away.   The wonderfully tasting Flourish Farm cherry tomato salad with quality stracciatella was perfect to go alongside – very refreshing. Tomatoes are simply the best in the summer months, and these noticeably burst with flavour

Turbot on the BBQ, Morchella, Clerkenwell. Image credit MTotoe/ FLO London

For mains we had the Turbot cooked on the BBQ simply served with a salsa verde. But sometimes it’s the simple things that impress. The Parmentier Potatoes on the side were the best potatoes I’ve had in a long while. Chunky cubes fried along with plenty of herbs and garlic to squeeze out of the cloves were tasty, tasty, tasty!

Parmentier potatoes, Turbot and salad. Morchella, Clerkenwell. Image credit MTotoe/ FLO London

They keep the dessert menu small here with just two items - a strawberry panna cotta and the Pecan, Dark Chocolate Paris Brest which we chose. It was as beautiful as it was tasty and the perfect way to finish off our lunch.

I am not quite sure how they did it (I’m imagining there was some kind of latte art skill involved) because as the chocolate sauce was poured it coated the pastry with a stunning black and white marbling, like a magic trick. Unlike my normal incessant questioning when I taste or see something new to me, I asked no questions because some things in life should remain a mystery.

Dark Chocolate Paris Brest. Morchella, Clerkenwell. Image credit Natascha Milsom

We popped inside before leaving to find the chefs chattering, smiling, laughing and hard at work busying themselves prepping some very good-looking produce. Crates of seafood being worked on and butchering a lamb carcass was so nice to see (though that is perhaps not for the feint hearted). Service was neighbourly and casual making the overall environment a very relaxing place to spend a long lunch.

Snacks: £4.50 - £90

Small plates: £14 - £23

Mains: £33 - £49  

Location: 84-86 Rosebery Avenue. London EC1R 4QY Opening Hours - Lunch: Tues-Sat 12-2.30pm Dinner Mon-Sat 5.30-10pm (11.30 close), Sunday 12-6.30pm (9pm close)   Website:morchelladining.co.uk Instagram:@morchelladining

Review by Natascha Milsom