Kingly Court in Soho is rapidly turning into a must-go area for all self-respecting food lovers. The first floor used to be for boutique clothing shops, but has been overtaken by an array of exciting dining choices. Life Goddess, greek experimental divine is one of those options you should definitely consider. The name itself is a mouthful, but it is to differentiate between the restaurant and their deli in Bloomsbury.
With gorgeous summer weather, their windows opened, you can almost feel like you are enjoying alfresco dining on an exotic Greek Island. The restaurant space is limited, but they have certainly packed in a variety of options: there is a small bar area for you to sample unique Greek wines and speciality Greek cocktails, there is a fiery open kitchen and a cosy alcove area for those seeking a more exclusive experience. There is a plethora of premium Greek produce displayed on shelves as well as artificial greenery on the ceiling.
An initial inspection of their menu will indicate their prices do seem to be on the high side. You might even find similar dishes at their deli a few pounds cheaper, but that is more indicative of the sad state of affairs with exorbitant rents for restaurant space in Central London. You just can’t imagine rent being cheap for Kingly Court.
The tiger prawn saganaki we tried did have a lot going on with cherry tomatoes, garlic, parsley, mustard, ouzo, feta rocks and other vegetables. It is always interesting to try a dish willing to break the cardinal rule (although mainly an Italian rule) of not combining cheese and seafood. The taste was very appetising although there was slight disappointment with the prawns being slightly on the mushy side.
The real standout is the traditional Greek dish of octopus with homemade jam. The octopus meat is firm with the suction cup part gently crispy and sweet from the homemade jam. You might wonder why they are serving cold mashed potato, but in fact it is Greek fava, which is a bean puree made almost exclusively from yellow split beans. The dish tastes healthy, it’s exciting and it isn’t something offered on the London restaurant scene regularly as a main course.
To finish, we tried the very festive looking makedonikos halvas with apple and cinnamon. Although once again, prices do seem to be on the high side with authentic Greek yoghurt with spoon sweet charged at £8.80. It might be the best yoghurt in London, but sadly we weren’t able to try it, as they had none left that evening.
Although prices might be high, if you are bored with dining on the same, old, tired cuisine, Life Goddess, greek experimental divine will surely reinvigorate your taste buds.
baldwin@townfish.com