The Wahaca Southbank Experiment

Last night, as a guest of Google London, I went down to the South Bank to try out the Wahaca Southbank Experiment. It's a temporary restaurant that's been built from eight recycled shipping containers and it's right by the Thames, affording a lovely view and creating a summer vibe for the space... if this weather ever eases up, that is. The menu at this special Wahaca will be adapted on an on-going basis, which is why it's the Southbank Experiment, and the dishes that prove popular there will be added to other Wahaca menus. Got it?

I took Olly with me - he's never been to Wahaca before - and he took most of the photos in this post. Well, he needed to earn his dinner somehow! ;) The space itself is pretty sweet, although I did question the loos which were sort of avocado green and plastic... OK, I guess they fit the whole recycled shipping container vibe, plus it's not as if we were there for the amenities.

     

Anyway, the important bit, the food. After plenty of chips served with guacamole and tomato salsa - and more beer - we were brought dish after dish to try.

     

One thing I have to admit first up is that I do not like cheese or salad so the first two dishes were not for me. I tried some of the chorizo and potato quesadilla (top left) but cheese just ruins dishes for me - if it hadn't have had the cheese, it would have been exactly my kind of dish. The salmon ceviche salad (top right) I was told was nice and had quite a kick to it - more of a kick, in fact, than the chili tacos (bottom right) that followed. They were topped with feta cheese, but not melted feta cheese, which meant I could scrape it off and enjoy. We also had a 'summery new potato taquitos' (bottom left) which I could see people ordering with a main as an alternative side, perhaps?

My favourite dishes of the evening followed these - the carnitas sharing platter, which is pulled pork, cooked for hours in Coke, and served with tomatillo salsa, fresh onions, limes, frijoles and corn tortillas. I could eat this all the time, and sharing platter? Pfiut - all to myself, please!

     

This was followed by the pork pibil tacos which were just as delicious - really succulent marinated pork with spicy pink pickled onions which really give these tacos a distinct and yummy flavour - definitely another favourite from the menu. And then, as no meal is complete with dessert, Churros y chocolate to finish. By this point we were very satisfied and very stuffed.

     

The Wahaca Southbank Experiment is sure to be popular over the summer months - it opens tomorrow (July 4th) but won't be there forever - and I know we'll definitely be returning to see how the menu evolves, hopefully returning in the sunshine so we can make the most of the space. Will you be going? x