So what do we need to know about The Remedy?
This eclectic little wine bar has been open for around 18 months, bringing together the talents of three chaps who use to work at Terroirs. They're pretty potty about wine - the list changes almost weekly - and most recently they've changed their food offering, bringing in an oyster happy hour (£1 a pop - 4-6pm weekdays and all day Saturday). They've also teamed up with the likes of cheese suppliers Androuet, Natoora, the Wright Brothers oyster farm, Ham & Cheese Co. and Godfreys Master Butchers to make that menu sing.
Where is it?
Just off Warren Street and around the corner from Portland Street tube station.
Who's it suitable for?
The nature of the small dining room here, means you're probably best off dining a deux here, whether that's with a mate from work, or on a date. The soundtrack's good and there's plenty of buzz without it being too hectic.
Where should I sit?
We've been here twice now and if you're just going to be trying the wine, then you really need a seat up at the bar so you can chat to the staff about your choices. But, if you're going to be eating, one of the tables along the wall would be your best bet. It also opens out with a little enclosed terrace on the pavement if the weather's good.
So, the food, what exactly is on offer?
The kitchen menu divides into snacks, oysters, small plates, a grilled sausages section some larger charcuterie and cheese boards for sharing and a few choice dessert. So, pretty much everything you'd really want to go with a few glasses (or bottles) from their excellent list.
We kicked off with a mixture of Irish Dungarvan and French Papillon oysters (three for £6 and three for £7.50) respectively which could not have been fresher and went down a treat with a glass of L'Hereu Brut Cava from Catalonia (£43 for a bottle).
A large toastie of roasted San Marzano tomatoes with dots of fresh ricotta (£7.50) helped soak up the next couple of glasses nicely before we moved on to a platter of their own smoked duck - wafer thin, incredibly tender and served on a bed of fennel and orange (£7.50) which went really, really well with that duck.
A plate of very good chorizo with tiny gem lettuces (£10) was also just what we were after - not mucked about with, just well sourced and our final cheese board of 5 cheese from Androuet (£12) was a generous tour of some cheese we'd mostly never tried before served up with plenty of bread and carta musica.
And the wine is pretty special, yes?
We had the services of co-owner David curating our choice (which if you can do the same, is pretty much the perfect way to enjoy The Remedy). So we had pretty much no idea about the wines we were going to be trying, making this a real eye-opening experience. The bar is currently in the middle of a month-long Riesling festival, so we clearly had to try several glasses of that. And while we can't guarantee that what we had will still be here when you go, if you see either Walter (£32) or Flick rieslings on the list, they're both bloody brilliant.
Overall impressions:
Obviously, if you're into good wine you're going to like The Remedy. But if you've been before, the new changes to the menu means a return visit is due. A lot of thought and care has gone into the food - it's not rocket science, it's just done very well. And when the food and drink changes as often as it does, there's little chance of you being bored here.
The Remedy is at 124 Cleveland Street W1T 6PG. Find out more about The Remedy
Hot Dinners were invited to The Remedy, prices are correct at the time of writing.
