Mat Appleton and Jess Blackstone open the doors of Saltine, in Highbury in October.
After opening their original cafe in Mountgrove Road, Finsbury Park in 2014, they have gone on to build a loyal following with further deli, brunch and lunch spots in Gillespie Road, Finsbury Park, Chatsworth Road in Homerton, and the old Pump house at Clissold Park.
They have also stayed loyal to suppliers such as Caravan coffee and Dusty Knuckle bread saying they love “delicious, simple and straightforward food.”
“We love utilising local suppliers and want to sell only the best we can find.”
The new venture will cook up modern seasonal, fare in a smart new space designed by the duo as a “contemporary, bright, calm space that celebrates simplicity and attention to detail.”
Head chef Phil Wood who has experience in top kitchens such as Spring and St John Marylebone has come on board to helm the kitchen and has put together a menu of vibrant dishes using whole animals from select farmers, Wildfarmed flours, and farm-to-kitchen fruit and veg via Shrub.
With a lighter lunch offering, and a full restaurant menu in the evening, sample dishes include cured bream with fennel seed saltine; little gem, cod cheeks and green goddess; slow roast lamb with braised wax beans and green anise; pigeon, corn, miso butter, hazelnuts; and mackerel, spigarello & chickpeas.
Desserts include raspberry ripple ice cream with blackberry and verbena jelly, and a syllabub in honour of Highbury’s history; The area was once so well known for both dairy production and partying that a minstrel is said to have sung to Elizabeth I about the famous ‘Syllabubs of Highbury Barn’.
A casual bar area at the front will serve wines by small independent producers, and a short list of seasonal cocktails. The bar leads to a glass roofed dining room decked out with stained Douglas Fir booth seating, 1970s Lübke German dining chairs and artwork by Paul Kindersley.
Saltine opens at 11 Highbury Park, N5 in October.
https://www.hamhigh.co.uk/news/23787435.finks-cafe-owner-open-saltine-restaurant-highbury-islington/
