London’s just got its first Tattu.
The ultra-sleek, lushly appointed, and occasionally jaw-dropping independent restaurant group already has impressive venues in other UK cities, but has now finally brought its glitzy, modern Chinese cuisine to the capital.
And not just anywhere in the capital – it’s at the top floor of the all-new Now Building in Soho, where it has sweeping views across the city.
Making sure that the views looking inside the space are just as impressive as those looking out is award-winning Joyce Wang Studio who, with the help of Shanghai-based artist Shan Jiang, have decked the place out. And the plans are quite something. The space is apparently inspired by a traditional Chinese ‘Courtyard House’, in which a series of grand residences all back into a central courtyard garden. Here, each one is represented by a different animal, meaning you’ll find:
- The Flamboyant Opposite House (Phoenix) – this is Tattu’s cocktail bar, which is filled with feathered fabrics, charred timbers, and copper-panelled walls to represent the unkillable bird. It also has a big outdoor terrace for you to take in the views over the city, drink in hand.
- The Intimate Western Residence (Koi Carp) – this is the smaller, and more intimate of the dining areas, with plenty of pearlescent shell and rippled glass textures to help bring out those aquatic vibes.
- The Regal Main Residence (Tiger) – this is the largest of the dining areas, where you’ll find the resident DJs surrounded by furnishings encased in “luxurious fabrics with woven liquid metal detailing”.
And all of these back onto the Inner Courtyard (Dragon), a dining area wrapped around a huge skylight, and looking out into the sky through a huge cherry blossom chandelier hung from intricate timber awnings.
And now, at last, we come to the food. The menu here is almost entirely new, with a couple of the more popular dishes from Tattu’s other venues — which means that you can expect the likes of dim sum king crab dumplings or Royal Koi Fish Gau; seven-spiced seared tuna with truffle aioli & yuzu ponzu; Szechuan red belly pork with baby leek and smoked & salted crackling; XO scallops; Chilean Sea Bass; grade 5 Wagyu ribeye steak, and more.
To drink, there’s a list of cocktails almost as impressive as the space – the Cherry Blossom Negroni comes with an actual, miniature cherry blossom tree drilled into the ice cube, and the Garden Zen (whiskey, Campari and banana) comes sitting on its own little tranquil arrangement with sand and everything.
Sure, this isn’t the most authentic — and definitely not the most affordable contemporary Chinese dining experience in town. And you probably won’t be surprised to hear that Tattu has attracted a lot of grumblings about style over substance. But chances are, you probably already know whether this is the place for you or not. And no matter how divisive it is, one thing’s for sure…
…Tattu’s going to make its mark.
NOTE: Tattu opened on 8th April 2022. You can find out more, and book a table, HERE.
Tattu | The Now Building Rooftop, Outernet, Denmark Place, WC2H 0LA
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