A venue providing jazz, blues, reggae and delicacies flavours from Africa, South America and the Caribbean has opened subsequent door to the Westfield purchasing centre
Given the speed of closures, complaints from NIMBYs and a normal sense of dread, London wants as a lot optimistic information about its nightlife as it could actually get. So all energy to initiatives that mix good foods and drinks with dwell music, resembling Soul Mama, a brand new venue in Stratford.
Handily situated on Celebration Avenue, proper subsequent to Westfield Stratford Metropolis in E20, it’s well-positioned for post-shopping eating, ingesting…and presumably dancing.
Soul Mama is connected to a lodge, however you wouldn’t comprehend it. You step right into a well-crafted atmosphere, mellow and considerate desk lighting and a distinguished entrance stage that places music on the coronary heart of the expertise.
No surprises, then, that it’s a mission of saxophonist and composer YolanDa Brown OBE. And, thank God, it’s not simply bland burgers and bar snacks on the menu.
The meals is led by government head chef, Aleandro Brown (ex-The Connaught, Maze Grill, Sketch, The Ritz) whose cooking brings collectively African, Caribbean and South American delicacies. It’s bloody good.
If the music is something to go by, they’re on to a winner on that entrance too (the band supported the late blues legend BB King, which is a good boast). The roster covers jazz, soul, gospel, reggae and extra, and is nicely value exploring to be able to discover a night when the sounds will match your tastes.
I went for the three course affair, at £65 a head. That’s fairly steep, however the parts are beneficiant, with an important collection of arepas, wings and fish dishes (although sweet-tooths be warned – simply two desert choices).
My spouse, who got here with me, is a meat-eater. She gave a rave assessment to the splendidly tender beef arepa, seasoned with African spices. It was complemented by sweetcorn and a cracking chilli sauce. For vegetarians, resembling me, the mushroom arepa offers a pleasant mixture of candy and spicy, although it pales compared to the jerk cauliflower dish that’s my most important.
The latter, I used to be glad to see, was large. Why go stingy on cauliflower and plantain? It hosts perfectly-cooked mushrooms and an excellently-balanced mango sauce.
We acquired the roti too, which arrived tender, heat, and well-seasoned, whereas the “10 wings” my spouse ordered was an even bigger dish than it sounds. Although service stays…relaxed, the standard of the meals makes up for the wait. It’s all gravy. Or somewhat, it’s all jerk sauce.
Soul Mama is open all week, however the venue is really alive on Friday (and I think about Saturday) nights, with doorways opening at 6:30 and bands beginning at round eight.
There have been a couple of teething points throughout my go to, however they had been very forgivable. The venue isn’t understaffed, but it surely typically felt that approach. It took about half-hour to hail somebody to order meals. My recommendation is to get a drink from the bar after which be diligent in waving down a waiter.
And whereas portion sizes are beneficiant, the kitchen’s apply of serving all dishes after they’re prepared (in different phrases, typically concurrently) does have an effect on the eating expertise, contemplating you’re prone to be there for a number of hours to take heed to the music. That golden duality – immediate service however a extra measured tempo of consuming – would remodel this place from good to nice.
Minor quibbles apart, Soul Mama is a useful addition to London’s music and eating scene. Lengthy could it develop and prosper. To assist that occur, give it a go to subsequent time you’re round Westfield.
Observe Josiah Mortimer on Bluesky. OnLondon.co.uk offers distinctive protection of the capital’s politics, growth and tradition. Assist the web site and its writers for simply £5 a month or £50 a yr and get issues on your cash that different individuals gained’t. Particulars HERE.
