Beyond Wahaca and my cousin’s tip that I’ll find the best Mexican food in the grottiest stalls when in LA, my knowledge is an empty void when it comes to the stuff.
So Zapote, the contemporary Mexican restaurant that just opened on Leonard Street in Shoreditch, was fresh and new, and a high bar to hold future Mexican dinners to.
The restaurant is a polished act, wrapped up in sleek, subterranean vibes. It’s overseen by Tony Geary, who has run places like Mayfair’s three Michelin-starred Sketch in his 20-year hospitality career, and staffed by a team who gave a service so seamless, I didn’t even notice how good it was because I was busy enjoying myself.
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The kitchen is headed up by Yahir Gonzalez, who made his way to London from Aguascalientes in North-Central Mexico via Spain where he worked in esteemed restaurants such as A Rexidora and Pepe Solla before executive cheffing at the slick Aqua Nueva, part of The Aqua Restaurant Group which also has Aqua Shard among its continent-spanning portfolio.
So Zapote, which is the pair’s first venture together, is a smooth operation indeed and befitting for Shoreditch’s stylish pockets.
Opened in February, the place still has the sheen of something new, in part, due to the size of the place. Zapote is a yawning big room with space enough for more than 100 people, including those sat at the horseshoe-shaped bar.
A lot of work has gone into transforming the cavernous space into something atmospheric and intimate. Lighting is low and moody, colours are dark and earthy. The barrier of bench seating dividing the room into bar and restaurant goes a long way in creating snug spaces, however while the restaurant felt vibey and busy with diners, my pre-dinner drink bar-side among only a handful of other tipple quaffers felt a little lonely.
With cocktails – tequila and mescal focussed - available in the restaurant section, and a compact snack menu available at the bar side, the division of space is somewhat only needed on an emotional level, but if you do sit bar-side, your chances of getting an off-menu cocktail made by one of the very accommodating bar staff are probably higher.
That said, the cocktail list is inventive and fiery and peppered with strong infusions such as tamarind and jalapeno, so it’s worth not venturing off piste also.
The menu is a solid list of sophisticated small plates that are light and delicate and many come with smears and drizzles of vibrant salsas, sauces and dressings. With the like of beef tartar tacos, spicy chorizo and rib eye available, dishes come with European flourishes too.
I say, as a mostly-vegetarian, the plate of chorizo and potato was a standout dish. The little nuggets of starch arrived rolled in the chorizo’s warm piquant oil and were almost as meaty as the little morsels of meat were and no less tanqy.
Another standout dish, whisper thin tostadas carried a muddle of yellowfin tuna and crab spiced with chilli and citrus, and the bright and zesty scallop ceviche with persimmon and orange, was no lightweight of a dish either.
Vegetarians will fare well here too, as the menu wasn’t lacking in veg-based dishes.
Coal-softened aubergine arrived with sour tart tamarind cutting through the smoky mess while pretty slivers of crisp baby radish and the most solid corn chips I’ve ever come across added the crunch.
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I also bookmarked a plate of baby artichoke for my return visit. They came crisped and blackened on the outside but with pillowy-soft centres and sprinkled with moreish crumbs of some sort. These were designed to be smeared through a fierce pipian verde sauce that was pleasingly almost too hot - an enjoyable challenge to rise to.
Zapote is cavernous, but once the word gets out that it’s a great place to go, it’s just a matter of time that it is filled. LA can have its grungy tamale stalls, I’ll take Zapote.
Address: 70 Leonard Street, Shoreditch, EC2A 4QX
Website: zapote.co.uk
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