Today we’re heading to Kudu Grill in Peckham, south-east London to sample some of the flavours of South Africa. Last year I visited Kudu for the first time and had a delicious lunch and was certainly excited to try out their new offering Kudu Grill which focuses on open fire cooking. A bit of braaing being done for me in the London autumn – how could I possibly resist?
The restaurant is in a renovated pub and is cosy and welcoming. And the lunch. menu soon had my mouth watering. Lots of South African delicacies served up with style and given their own unique twist. As the menu is fairly compact and there were three hungry people for lunch we managed to sample most of it. In other words – we kind of made it our goal! Gotta be happy with that.
What’s on the menu
Okay, it’s not often that I try such a selection of dishes in a restaurant and absolutely l love all of them like I did today. Honestly one of the best lunches I’ve had all year. We started with a snack selection and a glass of Graham Beck bubbles (well that just had to be done), while we pondered our choices.
Firstly, some of the best bread I’ve ever had the joy of tasting – grilled potato bread topped with with lardo and a wild garlic paste. I’m feeling hungry just thinking about it.
Grilled padron peppers were served with a creamy labneh (a type of Middle Eastern creamy dip).
And naturally we had to sample some of the farmers spiced biltong. I’m a big biltong fan and this was perfectly spicy and lovely and wet. Biltong craving satisfied.
A selection of starters
And a fabulous selection it was, too. Cured salmon is served with rooibos smoked creme fraiche. The salmon was so beautifully rich, at the risk of being repetitive possibly the best cured salmon I’ve had this year. What a day of tastiness it was turning into.
Harissa beef tartar is served with coriander and topped with crispy shallots. Creamy, slightly spicy, meaty and crunchy deliciousness.
Next up was a plate of grilled prawns served with peri peri butter. Now I must have eaten a version of this dish a hundred times and today’s was, you’ve guessed it, one of the best ever. It can also be ordered as a main course – definitely my plan for next time I visit.
Moving on to mains
A perfectly formed poussin comes glazed with acacia honey and served with pink pepper and onion soubise. Beautifully moist and tasty – all ready for finger licking eating.
I shared the prime rib which came with a treacle bordelaise and little sweet onion pieces. Cooked medium rare it was packed with flavour and incredibly tender and a beautiful sweetly savoury sauce.
We couldn’t resist ordering a couple of side dishes too. Like these beautifully jazzed up carrots with cumin, coriander and sesame seeds for instance.
And after that there are the beef fat crispy fingerlings. My goodness – crispy potato heaven.
Bring on the pudding
After such a feast there wasn’t much space left for dessert. But we had to give it a try. This is the melktert choux bun with jasmine ice cream. The softest of buns packed with perfectly creamy milk tart filling and served with the most delicate of ice creams. A fitting finish to a real South African feast. What a pleasure it was to visit Kudu Grill and enjoy such an inventive take on the country’s food. I feel a visit Peckham way may have to become a regular occurrence!
Today’s price point
And finally, the money stuff.
Kudu Grill is really great value for money. It’s two courses for £28 per person or three for £34 per person.
There’s a lovely selection of South African wine on offer with whites starting from £22, rose from £21.50 and red from £35. We enjoyed a bottle of Spier Seaward Cabernet Sauvignon from Stellenbosh which was lovely.
Kudu Grill is at 57 Nunhead Lane, Peckham, SE15
