Tapas Bar and Charcuterie Restaurant Ember Yard near Oxford Street: what do you get?

The menu here is similar to the restaurant I tried previously, and this time I liked the experience even more. From our table upstairs I could see the flames of the grill. We had warm welcome and attention all the time form all the staff.

Decor
Downstairs is a bar and more tables and a secluded area. And the toilets.

Plus an amusing double painting of Adam and Eve and wine. The restaurant owner Simon explained it to me.

The restaurant name, Ember, reflects the embers cooking the food.

Starters
You pay for the bread or olives.

The bread was very tasty. I scraped off the blackened parts. I am not keen on chargrilling. I don't like the last of charcoal. Also having had cancer in the family, I've perused the cancer websites which advise against eating food which is cooked on high heat and you can't get higher than food burned to a cinder. But I still ate it and I would still recommend it.

Having a pink (rose) sparkling wine, made everything nicer.

Our starter was the cooked vegetable in honey, which we'd previously tried at the sister restaurant Salt. (Four related restaurants. Next on our list to try will be Opera.)

Anything I'd like to change or improve? Yes, some kind of curtains or blinds on the front window as either a semi-barrier or complete one-way screen so you are not exposed to passers by. I hate windows exposed so that you are either facing the window and distracted by movement of people and vehicles outside, or sitting with my back to the window wondering what is going on behind me. However, only three of the tables are against the window and if you feel as I do about windows you can easily sit at a proper table inside, or at a bar stool, or downstairs at the bar on a bar stool or downstairs at a proper table.

The tables are wooden and close together. A bit of a squeeze. With fingers over the corners so you don't bruise your flesh or bang your bones.

Main Courses
The ribs on a puree of mash were good. So was the chicken.

Desserts
We ordered desserts with matching sweet wines which were excellent, aromatic and tasty, sweet but not sickly, interesting to learn about.

Desserts were the high point. We shared three. Even though my pears were underdone, hard and not so flavourful, the amaretti biscuits were so good! I also liked the honeycomb. We resolved to order honeycomb at home for home.

The coffee came up with the hot milk on the side as requested, with a small bowl including rough cubes of brown sugar.

Anything missing? The coffee was not accompanied by anything. They charge for chocolate as a special dessert. Maybe I'm spoiled, but an Indian restaurant changing half the price gives you a free chocolate with your coffee and/or the bill.

Despite what I've said in retrospect, we came out smiling and raving about the restaurant, saying we would try another branch and come back to this one again.

Not over-full of food. Nothing to bring home in a take-away bag.

At this branch the menu said that the expensive seat meal was for groups of 8 or more, and the restaurant needs 48 hours notice. So, for a special occasion, or Christmas, here's a good place.

See my earlier revue of Dehesa.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, speaker and author.

Salt Yard restaurant, London, England, for Spanish style tapas

The first restaurant of this group which I visited (oops - one letter wrong and spellcheck turns visited into Soviets!) was the Dehesa. See my earlier review.














The set meal at Salt Yard for £37 is hardly a cheap deal of the day (compared to the place I reviewed earlier, Comptoir Gascon, at £20 including a cocktail to start). There's another set meal here at Salt Yard for £42.50.  Not a cut price set meal of three courses from simpler ingredients and small portions, like the sort that French restaurants offer, more like the Tasting menu and gourmet menu at luxury restaurants.

Handy menu translations:

Tapas:
Chorizo (z pronounced th as in crianza) Spanish sausage, like the Italian salami or French saucisson
Manchego - hard cheese, Spanish equivalent of cheddar, from the milk of ewes, female sheep
Proscuitto - sliced ham

Pudding:
ganache (French for jowl - what you get from eating too much) a mixture of chocolate and cream, used inside as a filling or outside as a sauce or on top as a glaze. Not to be confused with g r a n a c h e (French) and G a r n a c h a  in Spanish is a grape grown in both countries to make white, rosé or red wine. The extra r as a second letter for the g R a p e .

This branch is near Goodge Street station. (2 minutes walk). On the 'tube' or underground line

They sell a cookbook by the chef, at £30 if you pick it up from the restaurant, £35.55 or £36.55 if you want it posted depending on which system you choose.

Salt Yard charcuterie bar and restaurant
54 Goodge Street
London WIT 4NA
Tel: 020 7637 0657
Opening hours Monday to Saturday 12 noon to 11 pm
Sunday 12 noon to 10 pm

That answers the question I often cannot not answer on TripAdvisor: Does this restaurant serve breakfast? The answer is no, unless you are eating your break fast (space between break and fast deliberate) at lunch time, and want to eat a brunch at noon.

Email: info@saltyard.co.uk
www.dehesa.co.uk
www.operatavern.co.uk
www.emberyard.co.uk
www.saltyard.co.uk