Waving not drowning at Tsunami

This review was first published in April 2001

I don't know about you but I'm getting rather bored with all these new eateries springing up around London - each one practically indistinguishable from the last. White wood and stainless steel suppliers must love them, of course.

Tsunami does little to break the, I guess successful, mould. A long room, the front lined with plate-glass windows, looks out over the approaches to Tower Bridge. Strain your neck upwards and you can make out the bobble caps of the tourists videoing each other. The walls contain a few splashes of wild, contemporary colour and one bears the image of a breaking wave, no doubt the titular tsunami. Who knows where the name comes from, but if the Thames Barrier ever goes, Tsunami is certainly in the right place to catch a tidal wave.

A long bar dominates, lit by more flashes of bright colour, the wall behind bearing a businesslike assortment of multi-coloured bottles. So far, so familiar, apart from the setting near to that weird oval building site destined to be Uncle Ken's new headquarters.

When I phoned for a booking, the voice at the other end described Tsunami's menu as 'upmarket bar food'. That's close enough - even if it's unlikely there's a bar anywhere in Britain that describes itself as serving 'downmarket bar food'.

There's upmarket versions of bangers and mash and all the usual, including a ceaser (sic) salad, whatever that might be. Spelling may not be the management's strong point, unless spotted dick with vanilla 'crusted' is something clever involving a blowtorch. But who cares? We'd come for the food, not for a grammar lesson.

The good news is the food is pretty decent. We ordered some tapas, a set of five costing just a tenner. Lemon couscous couldn't have been better - light and fluffy with a strong hint of fresh lemon. Meatballs were tender and juicy, their tomato sauce strong and flavoursome (unlike the tomato sauce, mustard and mayo, delivered to the table in open bowls, which all looked and tasted as if they had come straight from the bottle). A chorizo and red mullet combination was as odd as it sounds but still worth a taste, as was a dish of beautifully sweet peppers and butternut. Calamari was served in a light, crispy batter, not too salty, and with a mild dash of chilli. Perfect.

My only regret on the food front was sparked by a delivery of an awesome plate of chips to the next table. In fact, as the place filled up, everybody seemed to have placed an order for a plateful of these golden, massive, handcut delicacies. Next time.

The whole room was served by a solitary waitress who tottered loudly around the wooden floors in five-inch mules, womanfully balancing herself and trays of drinks, food etc. Seeing the effort this took, it seems churlish to complain service was so slow I had to leave without having time to try out that spotted dick or a few other tempting desserts. Service was charged but the bill was still left open. I didn't take the bait.

Tsunami
1 St Katherine's Way, E1