Kuch
Modestly tucked away in Clifton is the brandly spank new merchants of south Persian soul food, Kuch. The decor could be described as “spartan” (maybe the Persians have finally forgiven Frank Miller for 300?) Apart from some vaguely Middle-Eastern tiles on the floor, a couple Persian rugs on the wall … and a Scottish sporran strangely enough(?), it was free of overbearing, hackneyed try-too-hard design; opting more for some openly displayed jars of date syrup, rose water, quince jam, dried limes, pomegranate paste, and pasteurised unrip grape juice.
I had the hand-pulled lamb shoulder, date syrup glazed, from the manghal (barbecue). The varying textures and barbecuey flavours of the meat were delicious. The herbs, including mint and coriander, were fucking Fresh, forceful and functional, accentuating the carefree shredded salad and luscious lamb flavours. The salad was slightly dressed with a vaguely tinned tomato taste and piquancy not far off from overwhelming, and sat on a patted bed of addictively intense hummus whose texture was – in a word – sensual (… move over chocolate, looks like there’s a new erotic foodstuff in town).
I was provided with too much flatbread for one main, but at £1.50 you can’t complain. Although the addition of sesame and zatar spice aromas on the flatbread means you could happily munch it all day long, I of course added to the order later a side of Kash_k Bazanjon + adass, an aubergine lentil stew – and was very glad to do so. It had a sweet walnutty glaze composed of fried onion and sweet mint. The glaze was addictive as hell. Its alluring savoury candied flavours complimented perfectly the fragrant oils and spices of the aubergine and green lentil stew – itself already complex, aromatic and very tasty.
Ringanak was added as a spur-of-the-moment – and at £4 very affordable – dessert. Its warm mushy date loveliness was counterbalanced by the subtle crunch of sliced pumpkin seed and the coolness of tahini ice cream. The dates provided a sophisticated flavour, but it was slightly off from being sickly. It was just fine however despite also being a bit gacky and sticking to the roof of my mouth.
The waitress continually smiled smiles I was convinced were for me and only me, but after the place filled up service did become noticeably slower. It is worth bearing in mind though, that Kuch had only been open for two weeks. She was rushed off her feet, and I wished I had picked any time other than a Saturday evening.
Atmosphere & service-6.5/10
Menu-9/10
Value-for-money-10/10
Overall-85%
Address: 133 Whiteladies Road, Bristol BS8 2PL
Phone: 0117 253 0300