Writer Zoe Perrett visits Chotto Matte’s weekly Buena Vibra night in Soho for a bueno noche night indeed
‘Come As You Are’ reads the neon by Chotto Matte’s sleek reception desk. Having just arrived from an immersive 360-degree art exhibition, ‘how we are’ is probably best described as Alice fresh out of Wonderland, and the delightful surreal adventure continues with a (quite literal) trip to the loos, taking in a UV paint-splattered blacklit corridor and a hall-of mirrors-esque restroom.
Back in the dining room, we return to our senses somewhat and drink in the low-lit, clubby surrounds as thirstily as a pair of Palomitas from the restaurant’s Thursday night Bueno Vibra menu; where Código Tequila cocktails and light bites are served up along with live Latin music on a weekly basis.
The Food & Drink
We’ve only come for cocktails and a graze-y Girl Dinner, but the universe decrees that we end up with the full gastronanza that is the Signature Sharing Menu, and who are we to argue with fate? Especially when it comes with an accompaniment from a talented chap whose name eludes me but I will aptly rechristen ‘Carlos Santa-nah’.
As the Marimba rhythms start to sway, we make our way through what your non-Latin mum probably calls ‘picky bits’ (although – no disrespect to her faultless pairing of cheese triangles and Hula Hoops – your NLM probably never fused Japanese and Peruvian flavours as ingeniously as Nikkei cuisine does).
You can’t go wrong with a padron pepper, but Chotto Matte demonstrates that you can make them oh-so-right by dousing them in the den miso which first came to fame in Nobu Matsuhisa’s legendary black cod.
No matter how fancy your pants, it’s an undeniable truth that crisps make most things better; here evidenced by the way in which crunchy purple potato slices provide textural elevation to yuzu-truffle-doused yellowtail sashimi. Tuna-tartare-topped deep-fried rice cubes offer a similarly pleasing juxtaposition.
The parade continues with slippery-soft gyoza; a full sushi roll’s-worth of tableide-flamed salmon and sea bass maki, beautiful in execution both aesthetic and gastronomic; and squid tempura boasting a flavour-forward, crunchy carapace and a creamy smoked dressing.
The generosity of the dishes thus far could easily render mains extraneous, but the food keeps coming, and we keep going back in for more: oscillating between slow-braised teriyaki shortrib and black cod (the latter kindly borrowed from the Deluxe menu for the pescatarian at the table).
Soho is so London it’s rare to forget where you are, but with a guitarist dishing out Santana riffs, cheeky winks and sultry vox and a good-vibe dance floor that’s increasingly populated as the time wears on, Chotto Matte is definitely giving more ‘Saturday night on holiday’ than ‘Thursday evening ’round the corner from the office’.
We’d love to dance the night away ’til Prince Charming makes himself known, but dread at the notion of the last train morphing back into a pumpkin before we can make it to the station has these two Cinderellas grabbing dessert to go.
The Wordrobe Verdict
Glass slippers up on the sofa some hours later, we can confidently declare that the pillow-soft, at-least-50-layer-deep matcha crepe cake is a sweet worth savouring – and just as definitively state that Chotto Matte’s Buena Vibra is a bueno noche indeed.
Make it happen
Where: Chotto Matte Soho, 11-13 Frith Street, London W1D 4RB
When: Buena Vibra live Latin music nights run every Thursday night from 8-11pm. Tasting menus from £80pp
How: Book online at chotto-matte.com
Words by Zoe Perrett, writer
