Since opening last summer, Portuguese restaurant Casa do Frango has quickly gained a reputation as a real good time place and it’s easy to see why it’s so popular.
Perched next to the railways arches near Borough Market, Casa do Frango (translated as ‘chicken house’) is one of London’s prettiest restaurants with a menu inspired by the coastal cuisine of southern Portugal. Its three owners created it out of a shared love of Algarvian cuisine and have worked with a pitmaster to ensure the signature piri piri frango – slow-cooked over wood charcoal – is truly authentic.
Before even mentioning the food, Casa do Frango is a beauty of a restaurant with loft-style exposed brick, high arched windows, a large skylight that brightens up the room and lots of verdant plants. When we visited on a Saturday lunchtime, it had a joyful, lively atmosphere and an intoxicating aroma of garlic, smoke and wine – a welcome preview of what’s to come.
There are mostly communal tables with rustic wooden benches for large groups, however we were shown to a nice table for two. The restaurant was calm when we arrived but it filled up quickly and I can’t stress enough the importance of booking a table.
After our drinks arrived, the dishes followed astonishingly quickly. Usually this wouldn’t fill me with much confidence, but it seemed that the kitchen was simply running smoothly before the peak rush and everything could be plated up easily.
Piri Piri garlic prawns with white wine and parsley certainly looked the part and came in a generous portion of four. They were ever so fresh and plump, served in a gorgeous rich seafood jus, which was worthy of mopping up with bread.
Grilled chorizo with black olive mayo and guindilla peppers was meaty and intense with a slightly bitter flavour. It went well with the aromatic black olive mayo and tangy peppers and I liked the liberal garnish of fresh tarragon.
We shared the house signature of Half free-range chicken brushed with piri piri, however you can also choose milder marinades like oregano or lemon and garlic. The high quality chicken was tender, smoky and well-seasoned with punchy piri piri that had just the right amount of heat.
Our reason for sharing was to try a greater range of dishes, but the chicken is definitely the main event and a little on the small side, so I recommend one each if you’re hungry.
Green rice with peas, plantain, pickled peppers and crispy artichoke was a colourful, moreish side dish. The perfectly-cooked rice was garlicky and a little creamy, studded with lovely golden, deep-fried artichokes. It’s an ideal accompaniment if you want something more interesting than fries.
Lunch at Casa do Frango was a real delight, but my only criticism would be the hyper-attentive service. The staff were friendly, but came to take away our dishes too frequently, leaving us feel a little rushed.
Casa do Frango really impresses with its stylish surroundings, modest prices and beautifully-presented dishes with full-on flavour. It’s a tough time for restaurants in London, but this one has the winning formula that will see us all coming back again for more.
For more information and booking, visit: www.casadofrango.co.uk
All photos by Chérie City
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