Sapling

NOTE: Sapling has sadly now closed.

Saplings.

They tend to start thinking about branching out the moment they come into existence.

So it comes as no surprise that this new Dalston restaurant has positioned itself as being heavily wine-driven right from the outset. Set in an all-white sleeve space decorated with pale glazed tiles, the centre of the room is dominated by a long double-sided bar for casual seating, with snug two-person booth seating lining the walls around it.

THE FOOD

The kitchen behind everything is helmed by Jon Beeharry (Bistrotheque, Rita’s, etc.) who’s put together a British-focused menu of dishes like Scottish langoustines with carotene butter (it’s literally a carrot butter – it’s incredibly hard to make, but delicious); middle white pork terrine with white grape & watercress; and hake with a cockle & potato sauce and monks beard. And for dessert? There’s a Medjool date pudding with pistachio & custard, or a set cream with Yorkshire forced rhubarb, blood orange, and thyme.

THE WINE

Despite the big focus on the vino, they’re keeping things relatively simple, with only 36 wines on the heavily-curated, weekly-changing list at any one time. The bulk of them will be made up of sustainable, organic, biodynamic, and low-intervention numbers, but there’ll also be some grower Champagnes just for good measure.

And if even those don’t do it for you? They have around 100 extremely nice bottles in the cellar that are plugged into a Coravin system; meaning they can have a glass tapped without removing the cork.

If you want to, ahem, tree-t yourself.

NOTE: Sapling has sadly now closed.

Sapling | 378 Kingsland Road, E8 4AA

Like wine-focused east London restaurants? Check out Planque