Picture of Bacchus, N1 6PJ

Historical version 10 of Bacchus, N1 6PJ (view current version)

Relatively inexpensive “modernist” restaurant in North London, billing itself as “fine dining in trainers”. We visited on a pretty quiet Tuesday evening; there were only six other people there (a two and a four), so didn't get much of an idea of what the ambience is like when it's busier. It didn't feel extremely casual to me (apart from the bit where the chatty and friendly front of house guy sat down at the table with us a couple of times) but again that was quite likely due to the low number of punters; it might have been easier to relax if it'd been a bit busier. We liked the music — Thievery Corporation kind of stuff.

We chose the six-course tasting menu (£40) with matched wines (£30), and were generally pretty pleased with it. I wrote up our food in greater detail on the chowhound site. Overall, the courses were well balanced and interesting, though there was perhaps a little too much reliance on the "crunchy powder" meme. The three of us did disagree on which bits we liked and which we didn't, which I reckon is a good sign that most people will find something to like here. I think the highlights for me were the Bacchus Bloody Marvellous cocktail (a Bloody Mary made with clear tomato water), the small and tasty rabbit mousse amuse-bouche, the lovely fresh-tasting vegetable salad with edible flowers and a very well-matched rose wine, the perfectly-cooked spiced king prawn that followed the salad, and the subtly delicious almond and garlic sauce that accompanied the monkfish course.

Note the restricted opening hours; they're no longer open at lunchtimes, or on Mondays or Sundays. Also note that they no longer offer a la carte menu; but this is scant hardship since they do offer a 9-course tasting menu from which you can choose 3 (£25), 6 (£40), or 9 (£60) courses, and this menu is set to change every month.

The Bacchus website has its own set of forums, and a staff member has been known to post on the eGullet thread on Bacchus.

(Apparently some people have had trouble finding the entrance; it's on the left hand side as you look at the photo above, which is taken from slightly to the north of the restaurant.)

Other reviews

Opening hours as posted on the Bacchus forum, May 2007. Last visited 10 July 2007 by Kake, Bob, and doop.
OS X co-ord: 533245 OS Y co-ord: 183145 (Latitude: 51.530990 Longitude: -0.078827)
This is version 10 (as of 2007-07-11 15:02:14). View current version. List all versions.