Weekly Review: Baccalà

In a first for me, an Instagram pitch results in a pleasant new discovery.

I very much consider myself an amateur at this food writing thing. I don’t take money for reviews or charge for subscriptions, and I have no intention of ever doing so. I’ve benefited from restaurant generosity on only two occasions, and both times, it was a pleasant and mildly embarrassing surprise (which I disclosed). After a year of writing Professional Lunch, I am enjoying the chance to get to know other writers, restauranteurs, and industry PR folks, and I appreciate the benefit of the information that they generously share.

All of that is meant to explain why I was surprised to receive an Instagram DM the day after I published my review of Legare in Bermondsey. It was from Ilanit Ovadya, one of the co-owners of Baccalà, which, I must confess, I had never heard of.

“We’re an independent Italian seafood and wine restaurant with a soft spot for low intervention wines and bold, elegant flavours.”

London has about a zillion restaurants, so I wasn’t that shocked to have overlooked a small place in Bermondsey. But “independent,” “Italian,” “seafood,” and “wine” are all shortcuts to my soul, and we were due to see A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Bridge Theatre. So I booked Baccalà for a pre-theatre try-out.

The vibe at Baccalà in Bermondsey.

And I’m so happy that I did.

I’m writing this poolside in rural Sicily, having enjoyed a food tour of Palermo a couple of days ago. Our guide, Angelo, explained how the number of family-owned trattoria in the city is rapidly declining for many of the same reasons that similar spots are declining in London: Higher rents, higher taxes, higher employment costs, and higher food costs are all making it harder to stay in business. We looked hard and researched deep to find those sorts of places on our Sicily trip, and we enjoyed some fantastic meals as result.

Baccalà is that sort of place. And it’s worth preserving.

Sommelier Fabio de Nicola greets you as you arrive and makes sure you’ve got something fantastic to drink, drawing on his deep knowledge of wine and cocktails. But it doesn’t feel like he’s taking your order. It feels like he’s welcoming you into his place. Sure, there are tables, chairs, and a well-designed bar, but it could just as easily be his living room.

Then there’s the menu. Head chef Moreno Polverini knows how to cook. He’s Italian, obviously, but spent hears honing his craft in postings around the world for the Four Seasons hotel group.

We kicked off with tuna tartare and octopus carpaccio. The tuna was served with artichokes, which normally doesn’t quite work for me, but in this case, Moreno’s dish gets the balance just right. The tuna brightened with a big hit of acid, and the artichokes contributing that small hint of bitterness.

Dishes at Baccalà in Bermondsey

The carpaccio was delicious. The octopus with the perfect texture. Accompanied by well-dressed celery and fennel, which offered a nice hit of aniseed.

My main was linguine with red prawns. Obviously, the pasta was perfect, but the sweet little prawns were the highlight. The sauce had a strong dose of pepper that balanced, but didn’t overwhelm. My wife went for grilled squid with peppers, a lovely blend of sweet and sour.

A bottle of Sicilian white accompanied everything.

The whole experience was really pleasant. And the team had taken note of the theatre plans that I had mentioned when booking, and had us out the door in plenty of time to make our curtain. We went a little crazy on our wine choice, so our bill was a little less than £200. But you could easily dine at Baccalà for £75 per person with a cocktail or a couple of glasses of wine.

All in all, I’m really grateful that Ilanit got in touch. Baccalà was a real discovery, and one that I am delighted to recommend for a pleasant professional lunch or dinner.

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Quick hit: Fresh Italian seafood feels like a family-owned neighbourhood spot.

Details: Booking Advised. Bermondsey. ££.
Restaurant website. More on Instagram.
Find it on Google Maps. Unit B3, 194 Bermondsey St, SE1 3TQ.

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Thanks for reading this week’s review. What’s your favourite spot for seafood in London? I’d love to hear it in the comments. And please do subscribe if you haven’t already.