Koba, London W1: ‘i Admire Their Chutzpah’ – Restaurant Review

Sometimes, my memories of a edifice statesman astatine nan end, and astatine Koba successful Fitzrovia, cardinal London, nan enduring image is nan warm, fresh, sugary, legume paste doughnut served pinch a cookware of buckwheat tea. It was an utter delight, but then, Korean saccharine legume paste, which is made pinch adzuki beans, is truthful very satisfying: pleasantly claggy, almost nutty, and a small decadent, while astatine nan aforesaid clip still convincing you that it mightiness count arsenic 1 of your 5 a day, were it not stuffed wrong a basking caller doughnut pinch a whopping awesome dollop of whipped cream. It was a acold winter’s time – nan benignant where, by lunchtime, my ain umbrella had blown inside-out doubly and everyone else’s seemed wished to flick my oculus out. Against that backdrop, this doughnut was a infinitesimal of axenic bliss.

Koba, a Korean edifice by Linda Lee, has been providing moments of specified joyousness for 20 coagulated years, not slightest pinch its accepted tabletop barbecue basking plates connected which guests could grill their ain dinner. Or, successful galore cases, person their meal grilled for them by a kindly server, because thing says: “Lord God, what clip does my displacement finish?” much than nan look of a tired Korean server watching a pack of tipsy non-Koreans trying to activity a tabletop basking plate. After you’ve dropped that first sheet of onions into your handbag, you’re often much than grateful for nan help. To observe reaching 20 years, however, and aft an elegant revamp, Lee has now ditched those hotplates altogether. Koba 2.0 has besides slung retired nan achromatic tables, nan dangling extraction vents and overmuch of nan acheronian wood, and replaced it pinch a wabi sabi colour palette that’s pale, dreamy and, successful places, moreover twinkly.

‘Insta-friendly’: Koba’s mul hwei starter features mixed earthy fish, prawn, trout’s roe and an icy gochujang vinaigrette.

Small, elegant snacks and starters see nan likes of deep-fried cuttlefish, neat jeon shrimp, rootlike and fermented condiment pancakes and a really very beautiful yook hwei earthy beef pinch pear, seaweed and ovum yolk. These starters travel pinch a generous serving of banchan, featuring different types of kimchi, beansprouts and spicy cucumbers. Perhaps nan aged crowd will miss nan grill-your-own element, but, particularly pinch thing for illustration Koba’s dak galbi barbecue chicken, I consciousness it’s overmuch amended to fto an master return nan strain, not slightest truthful you don’t messiness up nan chickenhearted successful its heady marinade of gochujang paste, chilli and ail served pinch mixed leaves, pickles and sauces. It’s beautiful great, too.

Rest assured, also, that nan beef bulgogi pinch mushrooms is still connected nan paper and, should you really wish, you tin moreover grill it yourself connected 1 of nan fewer remaining tabletop grills successful nan downstairs backstage eating room.

‘Gorgeously staged’: Koba’s dubu sotbab of tofu, wilted greens, nori, mushrooms, greenish beans and rice.

Other parts of Koba’s caller menu, however, thin towards delicate, modern good dining. The mul hwei, for instance, is simply a beautiful vessel of prawn, earthy salmon and achromatic food topped pinch a generous scoop of vivid orangish trout roe and dressed successful an iced gochujang vinaigrette. It’s a crockery wherever the Koba reboot goes Insta-friendly, arsenic does nan dubu sotbab tofu and rootlike atom pot, which doesn’t sound for illustration overmuch connected paper, but which turns up gorgeously staged pinch piles of wilted greens, sliced nori, greenish beans and mushrooms connected apical of rice, each waiting to beryllium mixed in.

That’s a bully touch, and 1 of galore successful this caller incarnation of a useful small eating spot that has weathered truthful overmuch alteration to this area complete its 2 decades. It’s peculiar to deliberation really galore great, seemingly invincible restaurants person thrived but past vanished astir Charlotte Street, Rathbone Street and down towards Goodge Street. Elena’s Etoile is agelong gone, and not moreover nan OG Spaghetti House could past nan existent climate successful this small spot disconnected theatreland, but Koba is someway still kicking it. Will nan determination to whip retired those basking plates yet decorativeness nan spot off? I don’t deliberation so. The go galbi grilled mackerel is conscionable arsenic awesome arsenic ever, and successful truth it’s each nan amended for not having to strengthen my amateur antics.

‘An utter delight’: Koba’s Korean legume paste doughnut.

But let’s spell backmost to those desserts. Korean restaurants and nan words “let’s linger complete pudding” aren’t accepted friends, but astatine Koba I deliberation it’s worthy making clip not conscionable for that doughnut, but besides for nan immense scoop of caller vanilla ice-cream that’s served pinch slices of sweet, caller persimmon and a drenching of spiced, sticky syrup. Absolute joy.

Ripping up your ain rulebook aft 20-odd years is thing only nan bravest souls would ever situation to do, but I respect Koba’s chutzpah. More powerfulness to its elbow. Use these places aliases suffer them to nan decease stampede of theatreland stalwarts. I’m helping retired 1 doughnut astatine a time.

• Koba 11 Rathbone Street, London W1, 020-7580 8825. Open Tues-Sun, luncheon noon-2.30pm, meal 5.30-10.30pm (10pm Sun). From astir £50 a caput à la carte; luncheon group from astir £12; five-course group paper £45, each positive drinks & service