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The Fat Delicatessen was a delicatessen and cafe/tapas bar in [[Locale Balham|Balham]], just around the corner from [[Balham Station]]. It has now closed; according to Google Street View, this happened some time between August 2012 and September 2014. The information below is retained for historical purposes. <div class="old_info"> Delicatessen and cafe/tapas bar in [[Locale Balham|Balham]], just around the corner from [[Balham Station]] (take the exit signposted for Chestnut Grove). It's a narrow space, running back into the building. One side is taken up by a display fridge and long deli counter, while the other has the seating — sofa/banquette seating near the front, giving way to upright chairs and blocky pale-wood tables further back. Right at the back there are five tall stools for eating at the counter. The display fridge offers sandwiches and home-made ready meals such as shepherd's pie, while the deli counter offers a range of Spanish and English cheeses, charcuterie (e.g. San Daniele ham), and deli items (artichoke hearts and a couple of types of olives). A small selection of wine is also on display. The wall on the seating side is lined with shelves displaying pantry goods such as pickled walnuts, preserved lemons, jams, herb crackers, a small selection of flour, and (slightly oddly) Marmite and Worcestershire sauce. The etiquette for eating in is that you seat yourself; staff will then come to your table to take your order. You can ask for the bill afterwards, but it's quicker to just get up and pay at the till. [[Kake]] visited late on a Monday lunchtime in June 2009. There were plenty of tables available. Music interspersed with adverts was playing on the radio. The food on offer is basically tapas. I went for teruel lomo (thinly-sliced ham, £5.50) and roasted red onions with chickpeas, baby spinach, and piquillo peppers, £5.25) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3674191487/ photo]</small>, and accompanied them with some pan catalan (tomato-rubbed bread, £2) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3674194093/ photo]</small>. The lomo came glistening with fat; I don't know if this is a good sign, signifying good sourcing, or a bad one, signifying too-far-in-advance slicing. I enjoyed it, though; it had that "farmyard" tang that I really like. The roasted red onions with chickpeas were great (though note that I'm biased in favour of this dish as it's the sort of thing I'd cook myself); the onions were roasted to a nice sweetness, the proportions of ingredients were well-balanced, and the dominant paprika flavour was enlivened with cumin. A minor criticism is that some of the onions were a little over-salted. The pan catalan was a little oilier and crustier than I would really have liked, though I did enjoy the clearly-present garlic flavour. [[Kake]]'s verdict: A nice enough place for lunch. I might also give it a go in the evening if I happened to be in the area. Definitely on the gentrified side of things, but that might just be a general characteristic of the area. Accessibility: A ramp to get in, and it's step-free throughout. The single toilet cubicle is a large, accessible one with grab bars, alarm cord, and so on, though on a June 2009 visit the paper towels were out of reach on a high shelf. See also: * [http://www.timeout.com/london/bars/reviews/11034.html Time Out review] * [http://www.eattherightstuff.com/blog/2007/10/22/the-fat-delicatessen-london-sw12.html Eat The Right Stuff review] * [http://www.twelvepointfivepercent.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/fat-delicatessen-balham.html Twelve Point Five Percent review] * [http://www.spottedbylocals.com/london/the-fat-delicatessen Spotted By Locals article] * [http://www.londonelicious.com/dining/2009/12/the-fat-delicatessan-balham.html Passport Delicious review] * [http://www.qype.co.uk/place/128201 Qype comments] <div class="last_verified">Last visited by [[Kake]], 29 June 2009.</div> </div>
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