Quoting a friend of mine, “any food tastes better when it’s fried”. But that doesn’t mean that the food isn’t already tasty before being fried.
Gilly’s Fry Bar has this quirky paper bag lighting. The kitchen is visible from the spacious dining area. The menu is short and precise. The menu is split into raw, snacks, fry, sides and dessert. The food is British with influences from other types of cuisine. The menu is given together with a pen so that we are able to mark off what items we want to order.
Each dish is brought out once it is ready. This is good as it gives us a chance to enjoy the dishes slowly. The staff did ask if we were in a hurry when we ordered, as if that was the case then they would have brought out everything together.
The fried food feast began with Spicy Sweetcorn Scraps. These were sweetcorn kernels lightly fried and sprinkled with spicy powder. Next came the Halloumi and Honey. This was a favourite with the sweet drizzle of honey contrasting the slightly salty fried halloumi. The battered sausage was meaty and you could tell it was good quality pork. Sliced courgette slices and the sausage were served with a dipping sauce. All of the fried batter was light like tempura batter. A gem chopped salad was palate cleansing to have with the fried dishes.
So, you can’t go to Gilly’s Fry Bar and not order fish and chips. The Hake was flaky and cooked to perfection. Again, the batter did not overpower the taste of the fish. Chips and curry sauce were a good combination. Fluffy on the inside with a crispy exterior made these chunky chips tasty. The curry sauce went well with the chips. All of the food was of a good portion size.
For dessert, there were mini doughtnuts and deep fried celebrations on the menu. As tempting as they sounded, we definitely had our fill of fried food and couldn’t fit in a fried dessert.
Gilly’s Fry Bar is the place to go to for some comfort food. It is a slightly lighter take on the traditional fried food. It’s great to have some different food varieties compared to the classic fish and chips.
Gilly’s Fry Bar, 4A Clifton Terrace, London, N4 3JP
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