I am greeted with a bear hug. The kind that revives you, at the end of a long day. Courtesy of Julian Bennett, Salmontini London’s resident welcome party, a ball-of-energy of a man, this embrace is dished out before he even knows I’m a journalist.
When I hear there’s a Salmontini in London, I’m both pleased and intrigued. An admirer of the Dubai outpost’s ability to be both innately stylish, and located in a mall, overlooking an artificial indoor ski slope, I was curious to find out how such a robustly Lebanese brand would translate on London’s more cynical streets.
Immediately, my unexpected body contact highlights the restaurant’s desire to position itself as a friendly neighbourhood spot in what can be an aloof, upmarket area (Belgravia). This is something Jason Bassili, the brains behind this new Salmontini and son of Joe Bassili, one of the restaurant’s original founders who launched it in Lebanon in 2001, is keen to emphasise. “We want the place to feel sophisticated, but relaxed,” Jason explains in his Lebanese-Lancashire burr – he was raised in the north of England before going to university in Beirut. “People should feel comfortable staying as long as they like, whether they’re with their families, partners or business clients.”
The venue’s various zones make this possible. While the lounge offers sofas, low tables and a convenient space for a band – Thursdays are now Jazz Nights – the dining area is more formal, with a central dining table, an ex-railway gate as a lodge-style fireplace and a stunning, airy skylight. Downstairs, the private dining room seats up to 26, with an interior that can be worked up for either a business dinner or private party.
The restaurant’s colour scheme is muted. Walls, chairs and floors span a spectrum of creams, greys and blues, encouraging the eye to fall instead on the exhibited artworks – updated as each piece is sold – and statement furnishings, such as the rare solid piece of onyx from the north of Italy, displayed back-lit in the lounge, and the bare-bulb lights from Brooklyn or the leather on the walls.
Jason reiterates that he wants to make every kind of customer feel at home, however reserved they might be. “I chip away any pretension. Everyone takes a load off once they’ve had a Magic Monkey.” He’s not referring to the doorway antics but his favourite cocktail on the bar’s long list, rather.
While Salmontini’s newest sibling sticks closely to the same food menu, twists have been added to pretty much every other aspect. “London has a big cocktail bar culture, so we’re embracing that,” Jason explains. The drinks menu has clearly been doused with heart and soul, with as many quirky, creative details added as possible.
The same can be said of the dining menu. When I tell Jason I want to try the dishes he’s most proud of he bats back, “If I wasn’t proud of a dish it wouldn’t be on my menu.” When pushed, he relents that the spicy crispy salmon salad, Alaskan black cod and rack of lamb have so far proven most popular with the UK clientele.
Yes, you read that right. For those unfamiliar with Salmontini, the majority of the dishes do not include the eponymous fish although, there are of course, many connections with it. Salmon is served roasted and as sushi, and the restaurant has its own smokehouse in Dubai. In fact, it was only after the discovery of this ancient food preparation style in the Shetland Isles off the coast of Scotland, during his years spent working for top European chefs, that Jason’s father, Joe, a chef himself was initially inspired to create Salmontini.
The original Beirut restaurant was a roaring success. “People had never experienced a place like it – they thought it was a franchise from Paris,” says Jason. ‘The Lebanese prime minister used to eat there three times a week, and Jaques Chirac would head straight for Salmontini as soon as he got off the plane.”
Although Jason grew up around the glamour of his father’s successful restaurants in Beirut and Dubai, he didn’t last long in chef’s whites himself. “I started in the kitchen at 16, with a guy called Rodrique,” he tells me, “We were both chopping vegetables. I got a cut on my finger and almost passed out. So I left the kitchen and went front of house, while Rodrique stayed, he’s now our executive chef. My dad calls him master chef. He’s influential in London as well and flies out on a regular basis to make sure the guys are doing what my dad’s been doing for years.”
Unfortunately, for now, new UK legislation regarding the import of smoked meats from the Middle East – introduced, ironically, months before the London opening - means Salmontini’s bespoke smoked salmon has not yet made it onto London tables – although Jason says this is being looked into with haste. But, in the meantime, the Belgravia venue seems to be doing fine without its star player.
The spicy salmon salad lives up to its name: lettuce, salmon, spice, and what tastes like Rice Crispies cackle and pop in my mouth. The sweet, soft and delicate black cod demonstrates the kitchen’s confidence with other fish, while the Welsh lamb is pleasantly heavy in flavour. The outrageously decadent imploding chocolate dome drives home the fact Salmontini can take on any dish and win, fish or not.
It’s also not afraid to take on yet more destinations. After fulfilling father Joe’s long-held dream of opening a Salmontini in London’s Belgravia, Jason is already researching the next location. “I don’t want to rush, but I’ve found a couple of other places – there’s a big one I’m looking at just around the corner.”
As I make my way out, at 9pm on a chilly Thursday night in January, the restaurant is filling up. Of course, I am treated to a goodbye hug from Julian. “I feel so special!” I tell Jason, before spying Julian again, flying through the air to deliver a fully airborne embrace to an incoming gentleman. It must be the welcome that’s reserved for the regulars.
