NOTE: Eneko is currently closed.
The Basque Country has the most Michelin-starred restaurants per-capita in the world.
And in a not-entirely-unrelated fact, they also have the most Basque restaurants per-capita in the world.
So it’s probably a good thing that London now has another one.
It’s from Eneko Atxa, who – not content with running a world top 20 restaurant; three Michelin-starred, Bilbao-based Azurmendi – is now behind Eneko, neatly slotting it into the ultra-luxe One Aldwych hotel.
The contemporary dining space is crafted from natural Basque materials, much like the wine bar, where you’ll be spoilt for choice with the all-Spanish grape list, that also includes several exclusive options from Atxa’s very own vineyard (one of which just won best white wine in the world). As you enter the restaurant, you’ll sweep down a suspended copper staircase to the mezzanine bar level, and down another to the sunken dining room, flooded with sunlight pouring past that staircase during the day, and atmospherically lit to highlight the natural woods and stone by night.
Considering the pedigree of the food, it will probably have to be a three course affair when you come here. You might, for example, kick off with mussels, cooked over charcoal with txakoli wine; followed perhaps by Basque-style tempura hake, before inevitably finishing with Torrija vanilla sponge with home-made sheep’s milk ice cream. Of course, should you head along on a Saturday afternoon, you can take your pick from their new bottomless brunch menu, where beef tartare, tempura egg yolks and sizzling hot rice dishes are accompanied by endless glasses of wine and cava.
Traditional Basque belief is that good food means good character…
…so sharing this news probably makes you, like, the best person ever.
NOTE: Eneko is currently closed. You can find out more HERE.
Eneko – Basque Kitchen & Bar | 1 Aldwych, WC2B 4BZ
Like Basque food? Give Sagardi a whirl next time you’re in Shoreditch