It’s the biggest thing to come out of Borough since Borough Market: we’ve got the inside scoop on Great Guns Social.
The Great Guns Social folks are making its play to be the “culinary jewel in the crown of Borough”, and they’re bringing along some talented friends to make it happen. The crew, known for their delicious pop-ups, have found themselves a permanent home in SE1 to launch the next phase of their world takeover. They’ll be hosting some of London’s best chefs in a series of residencies, giving them complete freedom to cook you some incredible dishes.
They’re not messing around either, bringing in some serious culinary pedigree to run the venture. The grand architect is Maria Elia, a titan of cooking who honed her craft in some of Europe and London’s best restaurants. You’ll also know her from TV, having graced our screens as a guest chef on some of the nation’s favourite cooking shows.
Equally impressive is the talent she’s bringing in to create the menu. The first chef to take up residency is Khalid Dahbi, who has cut his teeth at some of London’s finest eateries, including Bibendum and Gaucho. Dahbi is bringing his moreish Moorish-inspired cuisine to Borough, having previously worked under Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver. The outfit are also adding a local flavour to the new venture, by sourcing most of their ingredients from Borough Market.
Dahbi describes his approach to food as “keeping it simple, and letting the ingredients speak for themselves”. Secret London can confirm that those ingredients speak very nicely, thank you very much! We were chuffed with the roasted cauliflower and aubergine dip, until the meat arrived and our carnivorous side emerged. A hard-fought battle – between the glazed tangia of beef ribs, and an obscenely large platter of crispy lamb – proved too close to call in the end.
Resident master mixologist Ash Lambert was on hand to ply us with cocktails – not that we put up much of a fight! The Brazilian Consigliere proved to be a crowdpleaser, but there was something fun about drinking a Bardot’s Diaries in front of a big picture of the woman herself. Don’t overindulge though, or the decor might become a little terrifying. Those unsettling doll pictures on the way to the bathroom will creep you out at the best of times!
You can expect Dabhi’s menu to stick around for a little while yet. He’ll be in residence for the next few months, before another chef takes over to create their own menu. Great Guns Social are keeping mum about who’s up next, but if the standard remains this high, bank on Secret London heading on down again. See you there!