Berber & Q is a grill house with Middle Eastern/North African influences under railway arches in East London (E8). The restaurant takes no reservations which means there’s usually a queue, I really hate this 😤! We planned to arrive as soon as it opened for dinner (6pm) but that didn’t go to plan (my fault, sorry) 6 🙈. But we were lucky that day, as there was no queue. Phew, because I really could not deal with Amen being angry at me lol 😂.
The restaurant looks like an old warehouse with communal dining. It has a cool bar, an open kitchen with a charcoal grill and red cushions that make you feel like you’re in the middle east. From the location to the vibe, it oozes hipster!
Berber & Q cooks both veggie and meats excellently, often you find that the veggie dishes are neglected but not here! Their star dishes are mainly veggies. Take note that the menu changes.
What did we have?
We ordered the hot wings, hummus and haydari for starters. Then we had the salcasi chicken thighs, beef kofte, and pork sausages.
Starters (Mezze)
These all come under their mezze, with the dips being served with grilled pitta (yum, bread!) Ps. I was supposed to be on a no carb diet – but I took one for the team and had the bread, so I can write this review, haha! 😉
The hot chicken wings were incredible! They were full of so much flavour that we were blown away. We didn’t fight over the wings but we all know who would win (shiima, obvsiouly!) 😋
The hummus was delicious. It was probably the most authentic tasting hummus we’ve had in a long time. It was great! The haydari is something we’ve never had before, but it was amazing. It’s essentially yogurt with herbs and spices, B&Q’s Haydari had soft cooked tomatoes. I loved it more than Amen. These two dishes came with the delicious pitta bread.
Mains (Meat)
If you’ve been following us for a while, you will know that Amen ALWAYS orders 2 mains. And that was no different here! 🙄
He had the beef kofte and pork sausages. He thought the beef kofte was ok, nothing too special and quite average. But absolutely loved the pork sausages. It was delicious and spicy.
I only had one main, like a normal person. Yes, you guessed it, I had the chicken thighs! I am totally dreaming about it as I write this, they were that good! They were succulent and full of flavour.
All the meats are served together on a tray with salad, cumin salt, harissa and MORE grilled pitta. Since Amen decided to get PORK, I had to ask them to put it separately, which they did.
There’s always room for dessert!
We shared the Cookie Nefe (with cream). It’s essentially a less moist brownie. It’s a warm chocolate dessert, which we love. We liked the dessert just wish there was more.
Overall
Our experience of the restaurant was really good. We loved the food and definitely would be going back. The restaurant is great for groups and we will be definitely telling all our friends and taking them with us. It’s also great for casual dates, but keep in mind that there are no reservations so be prepared to queue. We are happy to give Berber & Q the best BBQ restaurant in London.
Cuisine: BBQ – Middle Eastern/North African
Dress Code: Casual
Shiima’s Star Dish: Hot Wings
Amen’s Star Dish: Hummus & Pitta Bread
Price: £25-30
Rating: 4.8 out of 5
Berber & Q
ARCH 338
Acton Mews
E8 4EA, London
020 7923 0829
For large group dining reservations@berberandq.com
www.berberandq.com
One Comment Add yours