A celebration of roots at Da Terra
Within an impressive Victorian building in Bethnal Green, also housing the Town Hall Hotel, is where you’ll find Da Terra. Dark oak furniture, parquet flooring and a sleek open kitchen bring an instant hit of understated style and sophistication to the place, while a splash of colour from the artwork on the walls exudes playfulness and fun.
A relatively recent addition to London’s food scene, having opened its doors in 2019, the restaurant already has an impressive two Michelin stars under its belt. An ode to executive chef Rafael Cagali’s roots, Da Terra’s cuisine is an imaginative mix of South American and Italian flavours and references.
My lunch was the shorter version of their blind tasting menu. A pomelo caipirinha came to the table to kick things off, and that it did. Sweet balanced by bitter, with a light, frothy texture. An elaborate trio of bite-sized snacks followed: aged beef tonnato on a nori taco topped with caviar, a stout cup and a surprisingly light taleggio doughnut. Who would’ve thought tangy cheese encased in deep fried dough could ever be described as light?
As the meal progressed, it soon became clear that each dish to arrive was a work of art in its own right, not only in taste but in carefully-considered presentation. One dish, for instance, saw Arctic charr and thinly sliced yellow courgette intricately woven around one another. And if that wasn’t enough, vivid yellow tucupi was then poured over top. There was Shetland Island mussel custard with sake kasu, trout roe and seaweed presented in beautiful Wedgwood china. This was one of my favourite dishes. The sake brewed from Dojima Sake Brewery in Cambridge – the first brewery of its kind within the UK – came through wonderfully.
Moving onto the ever-exciting bread course, the theatrical element moved up a notch. A runner was even placed across our table to present the three different elements: freshly-baked sourdough, bone marrow and an assortment of butters (including pink peppercorn). The bread was dangerously good – springy, soft and still warm from the oven allowing the butters and marrow to melt into it effortlessly.
Da Terra’s inventive take on the moqueca, a classic Brazilian fish stew was next up. To bring the concept behind this to life, the chef brought a saucepan to the table. Within it, we could see the ingredients traditionally found within the dish as we were taken through its history and cooking method. The saucepan was then swapped for Da Terra’s stripped-back version of the moqueca, made up of aged turbot, palm heart and farofa. It was wonderful. Hereford short rib was an excellent savoury finale, which had been cooked for twelve hours alongside morel mushrooms, cassava, a zingy chimichurri and sweetbread.
But, of course, the show wasn’t completely over. The first of the dessert courses was cheese and guava, playfully coined Romeo & Juliette. These two ingredients are often referred to in Brazil as a match made in heaven, which they really were. Then came barbecued pineapple with coconut yoghurt ice cream and verbena. A fermented pineapple juice, known as tepache in South America was poured over the top. Refreshing and sweet with a hint of caramel from the tepache – it was everything you’d want a dessert to be.
Even down to its playlist (70s classics, no less), Da Terra proved itself as a restaurant setting the standard within London’s food scene. It’s serious about that standard, but knows how to have fun with it. From start to finish, the service was second-to-none. Each dish was presented by a different member of the team, who all spoke to us with not only flawless expertise but a real passion for the dishes they had prepared and presented. Every member of the Da Terra team seemed to really believe in the magic they were making. I really believe in it too.
