It's been popping up as Prelude for the past few months but now award-winning bar Oriole is getting ready to move into its shiny new digs in Covent Garden. And like the pop-up, this permanent Oriole is as much a restaurant as it is a bar.
Split across two floors, the main restaurant and bar is in the basement, reminiscent of the original bar in Smithfield. In charge of the menu is chef director Gustavo Giallionardo - he's been with Oriole since 2016. His cooking style mixes traditional Latin American dishes and flavours with European cooking, which means you're going to get dishes like:
- Sea trout with Torrontés beurre blanc, trout roe and daikon fondant
- Lamb rump with spring greens, huacatay (Peruvian black mint), carrot and yeast sauce;
- Coconut tres leches with fig leaf sauce and coconut sorbet
To go with the new dishes, their bar director Samet Ali has created new drinks, making good use of their first in-house bar lab using all types of contraptions like an Ultrasonic Homogeniser.
As for what's new on the cocktail menu, there's the espresso martini-like Finca Filadelfia. That features Eminente 7-year-old rum, Del Maguey Vida mezcal, cascara (coffee shell) vermouth, chamomile liqueur, espresso and coconut horchata foam. So there's an awful lot that's going into the cocktails here. They'll also have bigger sharing drinks like a new version of their Rio Verde - a tequila punch with tamarillo (tree tomato) purée, peach aperitif and watermelon. That all looks very impressive as you can see from the picture below. They'll also have bar snacks upstairs, like octopus karaage and a salt beef steamed bun.
There will also be live jazz in the basement, just like the original Oriole. As for the look, they've brought over various elements from the first bar, while the decor features lots of woven bamboo alongside cherry red and timber banquettes.
The ground floor, meanwhile, has the Bamboo Bar. There, cocktails will primarily feature sherry and vermouth, but they'll also have cocktails on draught if you're in a hurry. Those include the Chincha Alta, made with Ketel One vodka, Moscatel pisco, apple marigold, absinthe and Champagne.
So if you've been looking for a great new bar in Covent Garden - this is going to be one to check out.
More about Oriole
Where is it? 7-9 Slingsby Pl, London WC2E 9AB
When does it open? 28 August 2024
Find out more: Visit their website or follow them on Instagram @theoriolebar.
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