Our Editor paid a visit to experience Fitzrovia’s sought-after, exclusive destination restaurant and bar YOPO at The Mandrake. The multi award-winning boutique hotel, renowned for its fusion of amazing art, culture and design, has re-opened with newly evolved design and a new menu .
The creative force behind YOPO is the critically acclaimed Executive Chef George Scott-Toft whose new seasonal autumn-winter menu has the most inviting dishes. From the first glance we wanted to order it all. The dishes bring European influence to South American cuisine. The inspiration behind the menu comes from Chef Scott-Toft’s travels through Argentina, Chile and Peru. The entire restaurant, as well as the intriguing cultural and creative design elements and artwork, provide the perfect stage for his show-stopping dishes.
We warmed to the place as soon as we stepped through the door and were welcomed by the friendly front-of-house team who escorted us to our table in the extravagant restaurant. I only wished the light would have been a touch brighter so we could have appreciated the art and decorations fully. Even my teenage son agreed with me on that point.
Our waiter Anna was incredibly helpful and gave us a great run-through of the cocktail and food menu. The cocktails were far too tempting to pass, so we ordered a rum-based Samara, made with Bacardi Rum infused with warming cinnamon and apple and laced with Amaretto and fruit juices. My son had a cocktail called Herakut made with Patron Reposado Tequila with chamomile, green Chartreuse and elderflower cordial. Both were a medley of interesting flavours and pretty strong. Great appetisers, making us eager to tug into the inviting-sounding dishes.
The small plates for the table were perfect starters
We shared a few small plates to start with, going for the many classic South American dishes, expecting an interesting twist with each one. We ordered Beef and White Bean Empanadas; Grilled Octopus served with potato, caper leaf and hot smoked paprika; Chorizo Iberico, grilled sourdough and salsa Roja, and also Yellow Tail & Aji Tiradito Crudo – a re-imagined classic Nikkea dish from Peru.
As a main, we shared a Josper Grilled Sirloin, Charred Spring Onions and Chimicurri. The beef was from Derbyshire we were pleased to learn and cooked perfectly medium-rare, the house-way of cooking unless requested otherwise. The steak was very tasty and incredibly tender, a real indulgence I grant myself on special occasions such as dining in a South American restaurant. The sides were equally delicious; Crushed Morhgew Estate Potato, Parmesan and & Bottarga and Grilled Aubergine seasoned with Sesame & Soy.
The Pulenta Estate Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina was a perfect match to the main course.
After this fantastic feast there simply wasn’t any room left for dessert, not even for the popular dessert drink, Pineapple Tepache and Mezcal Granita. Nothing is wasted in the making of this zero-waste drink using pineapple skins.
About the art and re-created interiors
The new interiors have transformed to reflect and complement the dishes, creating a more sensual bohemian look with an eclectic mix of comfortable furniture sourced from around the world and exotic art to enhance the guest dining experience. On entering the space visitors will be stopped by the beauty of ‘Showgirl’, the grandiose ostrich by Enrique Gomez de Molina that takes centre stage, emphasized by other artists that have been brought in to enrich its aesthetic look. The polarisation of light and dark in the space creates a narrative that leaves the viewer with more questions than answers.
In the entrance lobby of YOPO, artist Marco Tullio Siviglia has created a site-specific artwork named ‘Mycelium’, that transforms the space into a cave-like gate, a rite of passage through a branching network encrusted with black sands, obsidian and stones. The wall sculpture represents birth and transformation, like the fungi roots that connect all beings. In the main restaurant space, three large candelabra, known as ‘Vestali’ – like the priestesses of Vesta, goddess of the earth, keepers of the sacred fire in ancient Rome – will capture the eye of the diner, with Marco’s intelligent design and installation giving guests and illusion that they are bursting out of the walls, and melting into stalactites like hundreds of candles.
Encapsulating guests into the adventure of YOPO and pulling visitors further into the curious world of The Mandrake; the second roof installation above diners’ heads is by artist Peter-John de Villiers. Mystical beings, therianthropes, repetitive patterns, and jungle fauna draws people further from reality where they can indulge in the unknown whilst enjoying breakfast, lunch, brunch or dinner.
From breakfast, brunch, lunch to dinner all accompanied by cool DJ
YOPO is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the lounge, with its own entrance on Newman Street, is open all day with a light snack menu and coffee and lunches available for take away. Come weekends, guests may indulge in a spirited and gastronomic brunch experience exclusively available on Sundays, accompanied by cool tunes by Music Curator DJ Karen Lopez to add to the fun and lively ambience.
Tis the season of giving and the meeting and event industry is once again supporting:
One Day at Christmas event which returns to help those struggling
