Even the most assiduously laid plans can go awry. There I was, en route to Bristol, hotel booked and paid for, reservation confirmed in exactly the kind of cool, clever new restaurant that the city specialises in. And then bereavement struck and the restaurant was closed. Nobody can prepare for the Reaper. All my empathy and best wishes to those concerned. I’ll be back, I hope.
But, in the meantime, what to do? Where to go? All the likely suspects were booked up, so I decided to head for places rarely covered by reviews: not brand new, no big name attached and, in one case, not even an actual restaurant.
So I can tell you about Kuch, serving “southern Persian soul food” on Whiteladies Road, and its bowls full of fresh, colourful salads, glossy olives; its hot, oily flatbreads and spiced meats; and its shelves stacked with jars of “liquid curd” kashk, pickled vegetables, sour orange juice and quince jam.
This authentic-sounding menu invites experimentation: our flurry of small dishes included “kash_k bazanjon” (all descriptions very much sic), a dip of lentils and smoked aubergine boosted with whey, garlands of crisp garlic and onion; and “naan-o-paneer”, fluffy bread with an exuberance of dill and mint, feta and walnuts in a sekanjabin dressing (an ancient drink made with honey and vinegar). But the aroma from the grill was too much, so we swerved the “gahimeh hayaty” (claypot glazed lamb) and fish with fenugreek in favour of heaps of muscular chicken thighs, burnished and crisp-skinned, cumin-rich kofte and the inevitable chicken breast kebabs. All came with bouquets of salad, tahini-rich hummus, punchy and fruity harissa, and plain rice or “zershk polo”, yellow from saffron and spiked with barberries, sultanas, pistachios and almonds. Dishes were sweet with pomegranate and date molasses, tangy from tamarind, pungent with dried lime or intensely smoky from the grill. Or all of the above at the same time. Homemade tahini ice-cream delivered a clever finishing flourish.
It wasn’t all sunshine and smoke. The waiter had no idea what the more recherché items were, and served us a whole anthology of embarrassed blank looks. Anyone expecting a kebab-style fast-food experience will be disappointed: it’s all cooked to order and it’s not speedy. The winelist is, well, basic. The street-facing frontage, with its communal benches, doesn’t issue a siren call, but the restaurant proper at the back, with that fragrant open kitchen, is a fine place to be. And for freshness, value and a bit of a culinary adventure, Kuch is a find.
There is also the lovely Bertha’s at the buzzy Wapping Wharf development, in its airy, vaulted premises with a vast beehive of a Neapolitan oven that blurts out fine examples of the pizzaiolo’s art every 90 seconds or so. In these days when nearly every pizza, unless it comes via Domino’s, is all slow-food-wood-fired-artisan-whevs, these are properly special: airy and blistered, the dough is supremely light from its long fermentation, the tomato sauce sparky, the toppings never less than delicious. I love pizza joints with the chops to serve the seductively simple marinara, just tomato and herbs, and Bertha’s is a sublime example. As was its “Heat & Meat”, with its pungent, Cobble Lane Cured pepperoni, and a vegetarian pizza with the gloriously Bristolian additions of kale and “charred, lacto-fermented peppers”. There’s not much more to Bertha’s – bread, good cheese and charcuterie, homemade ices and sorbets – but really, what more do you need?
And, finally, I can tell you about long-standing Bristol food heroes, Grillstock, and their minuscule “smokeshack” at St Nicholas Market, where the burnt ends were like meat toffee (in the most seductive way), the pulled pork a sultry beast of a thing light years beyond the horrible ready-meal cliche that it has become elsewhere and the sauces (also available to buy to take home) that would turn the humblest grilled hunka meat into a thing of hot loveliness. The white bread sesame buns aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I liked them: a refreshing, old-school departure from the inevitable brioche or (sacrilege!) ciabatta.
So there you go: three for the price of one. Don’t say I never give you anything. No need to thank me. My cholesterol levels and avoirdupois have already responded with all due enthusiasm.
• Kuch 133 Whiteladies Road, Bristol, 0117-253 0300. Open all week 9am-11pm. About £25 a head plus drinks and service.
Food 7/10
Atmosphere 7/10 Value for money 9/10
• Bertha’s Open Tues-Thurs 6-9pm, Fri noon-2.30pm & 6-10pm, Sat noon-10pm, Sun noon-4pm. About £15 a head plus drinks and service.
Food 8/10
Atmosphere 7/10
Value for money 8/10
• Grillstock Smokestack, St Nicholas Market, Glass Arcade, Bristol. Open all week 10am-3pm. About £15 a head.
Food 7/10
Atmosphere n/a
Value for money 8/10
