I thought it was about time I found out what all of the fuss was about.
How good could it really be? A pan-asian restaurant tucked away in the midst of Camden's Stables Market? Well, I'll let you in on a little secret. Just between me and you, it turns out it's pretty spectacular.
Exhibit A:
I could honestly eat the duck spring rolls forever.
So, let me tell you a little bit about the place. Gilgamesh first opened up in 2006, boasting a bar and lounge area, a nightclub and of course, the restaurant itself.
The chef, Ian Pengelley, is nothing short of a genius. The cuisine is described as Pan-Asian, and offers a selection of the most decadent starters, mains and desert plates which London has to offer.
Having scooped 'Most Original Restaurant' in the Tatler Restaurant Awards back in 2007, its clear to see that not much has changed since then.
The place is dark, slightly cramped and a lot to take in. One minute you're gorging on a feast of black bean spare ribs and the next, you have the 18:08 train from Kentish Town Station whizzing straight past you. It's a strange little cave of deliciousness, but it's one which I'd happily shack up in for the night.
When it came to ordering, Sophie and I kind of went to town. We went for:
I gave Sophie a chop-stick master class over dumplings and plum sauce, (potential love interests can thank me later, you're welcome.)
Egg fried rice, crispy chilli chicken and vegetable tempura. The chicken was incredible. As someone who can be a little bit funny about eating chicken from the bone, it really is as good as it gets.
It comes with a garnish of cucumber and chills which go brilliantly with the juicy meat and sizzled skin.
The only dish which I wouldn't order again is probably the tempura. Although it pains me to say it, deep fried avocado was probably never going to work. The sweet potato was slightly better, but as soon as it gets a little cold the dish is a write off. If I were you, I'd scratch the tempura and go for the black bean ribs. The table next to ours were tucking in to a plateful and it really did look scrummy.
We shared a bottle of blush over dinner, which I strongly recommend you do the same. The wine is delicious and reasonably priced, coming in at around £26 a bottle.
The dinner was rounded off by our waiters recommendation, the chocolate fondant. Being a slight pistachio fanatic, I insisted he swap the vanilla ice cream in favour of something slightly more nutty, which to my delight, came out as this:
You'll have to excuse the awful picture quality, it really was dark in there!
When we'd had our fill of gooey, chocolately sponge and licked the plate clean, we made our way upstairs for a few cocktails.
The venue really is something special, if not slightly strange. A whole host of different characters could be found hiding in corners sharing platters of sushi and sashimi, so go check it out for yourself.
Just remember, order the duck spring rolls.
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