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Cinnamon Kitchen, Battersea Power Station
A Cool Location
This was our first visit to London’s Battersea Power Station since work began on this stunning Grade-II listed building, and the regeneration of this area many years ago - and what an amazing place this is - and is going to be! Only a short walk from Chelsea (over Battersea Bridge), you can really appreciate the extent of the development that is happening here – mostly comprised of stunning apartments, surrounded by a number of trendy restaurants, shops and offices – most right by, or overlooking the Thames.
Vivek Singh, and his talented brigade of chefs, this year celebrate the 10th anniversary of Cinnamon Kitchen in Devonshire Square, having spent the past decade serving up inventive modern Indian cuisine, where we have very much enjoyed dining on previous occasions. Cinnamon Kitchen Battersea is the third Cinnamon Kitchen restaurant (following Cinnamon Kitchen Oxford which opened in October 2017, the first outside of London), and is a welcome addition to this location.
Situated in Circus Village West, Cinnamon Kitchen Battersea has a minimalist industrial decor to complement the stark backdrop of the historic Power Station. You enter through the dramatic railway arch opening and discover an edgy, modern dining room with exposed brick walls and a cool monochrome colour palette offset with pops of jade green and luxe finishes such as marble, and brass. Added theatre comes from the expansive open-plan kitchen. A private cage style mezzanine, overlooking the restaurant, is an ideal space for celebrations whilst a large outdoor terrace with sweeping views across the Thames will certainly be a sublime spot come summertime.
The restaurant serves contemporary Indian dishes, many unique to the Battersea restaurant, and we should also mention the imaginative cocktails by award-winning mixologist Tony Conigliaro, and bar bites inspired by the dishes found on the Mumbai Jaipur Pink City Express train route.
The Main Event ... An Some Cocktails
For Cinnamon Kitchen Battersea, Conigliaro has created distinctive cocktails inspired by fire, ice and spice. The Coconut Kir (£12.50), a twist on the traditional Kir Royale made with toasted coconut liqueur and champagne, is the perfect aperitif and was a much-appreciated welcome for us; delicious and very easy to drink. Other cocktails that have been concocted by Conigliaro include the Vodka Chaas, a vodka spiced version of the classic Indian drink ‘Chaas’ made with lemon juice and yoghurt; the Mezal Verdita, an Indian take on Mexican Sangrita using mezcal and tomato verdita; and the Assam Manhattan, blended with assam black tea, vermouth and a touch of black cardamom – all highly mouth-watering in their description alone!
The railway arch location reminded Vivek of the amazing food experiences on train journeys in India, and the bar bites are inspired by the spices and delicacies found along the Mumbai Jaipur Pink City Express route, one of the very best train routes as far as Vivek is concerned! The menu is split into train stops, where guests can enjoy authentic dishes from those very areas including Duck Heart Tak-a-Tak with ginger and chilli found at Mumbai Central and Bhel Puri Chaat from Surat Junction. This would certainly be an experience worth considering.
Cinnamon Kitchen are known for their inventive dishes, and pushing culinary boundaries, and this was evident during our lunch. There are special menus (including a lunch set menu, tasting menus and vegetarian menus); we chose from the a` la carte menu.
The appetisers all sounded highly appealing, but we chose the Tandoori Chicken Breast Tikka with red chilli and fenugreek and coriander chutney (£8) and the Railway Style Vegetable Cake with beetroot and raison, and kasundi mustard (£7). We shared the plates, and they both provided the perfect start to our lunch; both dishes deliciously spicy and warming, whetting our appetite in preparation for our main course. Signature appetiser’s also include Malabar Mussels and date pickle on toasted brioche with curried yoghurt, and Kerala Spiced Lobster Soup with flamed cognac.
As recommended by our waiter we opted for Clove Smoked Lamb Rump with fennel, saffron rice and nutmeg sauce (£24) and King Prawns in Bengali Turmeric Curry with ghee rice and spinach poriyal (£25) for our main meals. Both dishes were wonderfully fragrant and full of flavour. Paired with a Peshwari Nan (£5.50) and Stir Fried Greens with cumin and garlic (£4.50), this delicious and appetising meal provided the fire and spice promised.
In Conclusion
A number of veggie and vegan dishes options including Pink Aubergine with sesame, tamarind and peanut crumble, and Bharwan Courgette filled with spiced vegetable ratatouille demonstrate the versatility of Singh and the team.
With an ample wine and drinks list to complement the cocktail choices, we enjoyed a chilled bottle of Sauvignon Blanc with our meal (from £22.50 a bottle). A cold, white wine was the perfect match to our meal, especially our main course choices. There is also an enticing Fine Wine and Champagne selection.
With a little room left for dessert, we were tempted by the Sticky Ginger Toffee Pudding with garam masala ice cream (£7), and the Hot Dark Chocolate Mousse with cinnamon ice-cream (£7). I did, of course, have to sample both dishes, which were both deliciously sweet and comforting in equal measure.
If you want to enjoy delicious modern Indian cuisine from the laid-back and edgy surroundings of a quirky railway arch, then I couldn’t think of a better place to go than the Cinnamon Kitchen Battersea! The excellent food and drinks are just the icing on the cake.
