Some of my most favourite memories have been made in Camden.
So when the old man's birthday rolled around, I knew just the place. You see, my dad was a little bit of a 'lad about the town', back in the good old days.
He would scoot along on his Lambretta dressed in a lilac tonic suit whilst humming The Cure's finest. (I was actually named after the 80s new wave rock ballad 'Charlotte Sometimes', tres chic, huh?)
My dad spent a whole 'lotta time trawling the Camden scene with the rest of his cronies, so I thought I'd take him back there. Nothing too fancy, nothing too suave. Just good food and even better rum.
We rallied the troops and headed to Cocobamboo for a taste of the Caribbean. And a side dish (or five) of Brazil.
According to legend, owners Junior and Emanuela Menezes met in Camden around seven years ago. Having both grown up in the same small city in the north-east of Brazil, sparks flew and before they could say 'black bean stew!' they were happily married.
It wasn't until some years later when Junior's sister unearthed a childhood photograph of her brother that fate reared it's loved-up little head. Clear as day, in the background of the picture stood a young Emanuela, unknowingly walking past her future husband and life-long soul mate.
It gets better. Not only were the two destined for each other since birth, they were also blessed with the same passion for a plateful. Both had worked within the restaurant industry since moving to London, with Junior trained as a Cordon Bleu chef and his wife, a waitress, and the two shared a dream of opening up their very own restaurant. Alas, Cocobamboo was born.
Drenched in rum and drizzled with jerk sauce.
Now, all of this romance-talk was ja'makin me thirsty. To kick things off, I went for a passion fruit mojito and a Jamaican iced tea. Both were pretty darn delicious.
Don't be fooled by these little babies. There's a whole 'lotta booze in that cup. The cocktail list is almost never ending, and the bar-tenders are more than willing to whip up a concoction of your choice with a nano-seconds notice. The bar proudly boasts a thousand and one exotic liqueurs, flavoured rums and vodkas, and I made it my mission to take full advantage of it. I'd suggest you do the same.
Next up, the grub.
I decided to set up my very own little tapas station and order half of the starters menu. First up came the jerk wings. Crispy chicken drenched in an authentic Caribbean sauce. The flavours are nothing like what comes out of a squeezy bottle from Tescos. This the real shebang.
Then came the greenery. A chunky mango and avocado salad which I teamed with a 'mango delight', a rich, creamy cocktail with just the right amount of zing. It was ideal as a side dish but I really wouldn't order it on it's own. It did exactly what it said on the tin, nothing more, nothing less.
That said, what came next included a whole 'lotta meat.
Caribbean spare ribs. Salty, sweet, gooey and sticky meat draped in cucumber and spring onion. Yes, I got down, yes I got dirty. And hell no did I use a fork! The ribs were incredibly tasty and there were enough of them to feed a small army. I'm a greedy little cretin and even I couldn't polish it all off.
A went for 'bobo de camarao', a shrimpy, coconutty dish served with rice and greens.
And the birthday pops opted for Caribbean steak and 'tatas.
As good as everything looked and smelt, the curry goat induced a pretty nasty bout of food envy from the majority of the table. The goat was perfectly succulent and the sauce? Well. Lets keep this PG, shall we. Before goat-related fisticuffs broke out, it was time for cake and a very happy birthday boy.
I think he might have wished for more curry goat. But I'm not totally sure.
If you find yourself peckish in Camden, definitely give Cocobamboo a go. After 11pm on Saturday nights the three-floor restaurant transforms into a lively cocktail bar, so even if you're just feeling thirsty, Cocobamboo is your place.
Just make sure you book online before hand and pass on asking the bar staff whether they have beer-can or not. I learnt that one the hard way.
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