Juma Kitchen

I've now been to Clapham a grand total of three times in my life. The first was to Chicago Rib Shack, the second and third trips The Jam Tree. Whilst I can't stop thinking about their Confiture cocktail (deliciously, wickedly sweet), it wasn't that that brought me back but instead a 50-strong supper club with a difference. I'd interviewed Phil Juma of Juma Kitchen a couple of months back for TryThisFor and he invited me down for an evening like no other. 

I wrote about my introduction to Iraqi cuisine over at TryThisFor - head this way for a crash course in five courses of incredible Middle Eastern fayre.

The Jam Tree, Clapham

I've lived in London seven and a half years and last Wednesday was my second foray to Clapham - the first was to the Chicago Rib Shack launch with the Try This For team just last year. I don't know a great deal about SW4 other than there's a club called Inferno's and recently there's been a whole host of new openings recently that really are worth a look in. Last week, The Jam Tree invited me down to try and show me that it's worth crossing the river once in a while.

I had some time to kill after a meeting and walked from Marylebone to Clapham - a cool 4.4 miles across town - meaning I was ready for a cocktail or two. As well as the classics (and a very tempting Bloody Mary menu that included homemade beef stock as an ingredient in one), The Jam Tree's signatures are their concoctions made with jam. They recommended I try the Confiture (Cariel Vanilla vodka shaken with raspberry jam, Chambord and pineapple juice) and boy, was it good. Ideally sweet but without being overly saccharine, it was a great introduction to their list. Next up was the Damson In A Dress (Damson vodka, Martini Bianco, lime jam and prosecco) which was the perfect antidote with that vermouth bite cutting through the fruitiness.

We were there to try the new menu from Executive Chef Gary Smith who aims to 'create globally inspired plates bursting with flavour. The menu comprises an assortment of small and big plates as well as hearty sharing dishes, perfect for enjoying with groups of friends'. We started with the sotong manis (sticky battered squid) - large pieces of squid in a sweet honey and soy dip with a little added heat from chilli. A nice touch to a perennial favourite. I spied 'lardo' and had to have the lardo and braised Scotch Bonnets on toast - bitesize delights with a real kick. The chilli here outshone the lardo which was a shame but a nice try nonetheless. Finally, we shared the buttermilk fried rabbit. I've never eaten rabbit so had no idea what to expect but was surprised it was a whiter meat than I'd imagined. Less gamey too. Good when dipped in the hot sauce but I doubt I'd order again.

Moving on to mains, we originally planned to share the salt baked sea bass with caponata and polenta but another table nabbed the last one so A chose the hanger steak with chips and salsa verdi. Nicely cooked, it was melt in the mouth and I enjoyed my bites but A found the rosemaryed meat a bit too much for him. I went for two more starters - the salmon tartare which was nice and came with the seasoning on the side to fold in yourself. I'm not a massive fan of pumpernickel bread but that's an aside and I used my toasts from the very buttery potted shrimp to dip into the two.





Service was friendly and attentive and the recommendations were good. The restaurant around us was filled with lots of dates and a couple of groups at the bar. Windows open onto the street and there's a large garden area out the back that is no doubt rammed on Fridays and Saturdays when things really kick off at The Jam Tree. Would I venture south of the river again? Yes - to check out those ridiculously brilliant sounding Bloody Marys.

The Chicago Rib Shack

You could say The Chicago Rib Shack's the godfather. The came before. The one with history. Originally opened in 1982, it paved the way for the all-American restaurants that are a dime a dozen in the city at the moment. It's had its moments, though, with the original site in Knightsbridge gone but not forgotten, instead operating across three food courts and a new opening in Clapham.

The Try This For team were invited to come down and check it out. For the meat obsessives in the team, this was a total no-brainer. Me, I was intrigued - I'm not a big wings and ribs fan but wanted to see what men, women and children the world over write home about so made the trek to no man's land (read: Clapham) to sample some Stateside wares.

Tucked beneath the Overground, it's positively shiny with newness - it's only been open since Monday after all. A few lime green booths and some tall tables line one wall with a chrome fitted bar down the other. The kitchen pass and bathrooms are towards the back and the place buzzes with activity.

We kicked off with cocktails, naturally. On the recommendation of the loveliest waiter I've ever been served by (a serious accolade right there for you, Stef), I went for the watermelon and ginger martini - a syrupy smooth Skyy vodka delight with a fresh kick from the ginger. This was then swiftly followed by another recommendation - the Mr Martinez. A flirty little number, this was one cocktail that was not short on flavour; combining Opihr (an oriental spiced gin), Luxardo maraschino, Dubonnet and orange bitters.

Then onto the food. We started with deep fried mac and cheese bites which was total and utter gluttony but melt in the mouth good, especially accompanied by a classic tomato salsa. The rest of the team also shared chicken wings (both BBQ and spicy) with blue cheese sauce, and the pulled pork scotch egg which wasn't so great a choice - the moistness of the meat meant the egg had essentially boiled inside rather than having that rich, gooey yolk that Pieminister has perfected.

Then came serious meat. Two huge racks of ribs - one the Baby Back (all I could think about was that scene in Austin Powers) and the other the Beef. As someone who steers clear of ribs normally, I was admittedly impressed to see these enormous portions served up on a wooden board with meat that fell from the bone without being sticky. Chinese restaurants, take note. We also ordered the Spicy Kiss Burger; a towering behemoth of meat and bun that came speared with a steak knife, brimmed with pickles and cheese and was far too big to fit into one's mouth without some serious slippage consequences.  I chose the Po'Boy Sandwich purely because I'd burgered myself out at MeatMission on Tuesday so fancied something less heavy - served as an open sandwich, the breaded cod, calamari and prawn looked good on the menu but lacked any real flavour on the plate. You win some, you lose some.

Where The Chicago Rib Shack really came into its own was the sides: we chose the onion loaf which was essentially a deep fried heart attack and exactly how it sounds; manslaw - a beefed up version of coleslaw with the added bite from jalapenos that totally needs to be served everywhere as a much better alternative of its bland cousin; fries, naturally; and truffled mac and cheese that won the award for dish of the day. Cheesy staple, yes, but with truffle oil folded through, it was something that I would gladly eat every single day. Who cares about calories?

We finished with Twinkles (prosecco, vodka and elderflower) and espresso martinis over the vanilla cheesecake (bland), chocolate brownie (brilliantly chewy) and the key lime pie (warm). Having a pastry chef amongst the team, we were never going to be the most appreciative of pudding testers but there's definitely room for improvement here.

All in all, this place comes out on a positive. The atmosphere was good (the music was excellent), the staff were above and beyond brilliant and that mac and cheese... Would I go back? I'm not sure - but my uncertainty's only because I'm not completely sold on ribs. Yet.