Da Terra at Town Hall Hotel - Shoreditch, London

It's an unlikely marriage between Italian and Brazil, but ultimately, at Da Terra, a successful one. The fine dining operation at the Town Hall Hotel was recently awarded a Michelin star and looks poised to potentially capture more. Helmed by Paulo Airaudo (Amelia) and Rafael Cagali (The Fat Duck, Quique Dacosta), they've draw on their auspicious careers and the rich culinary traditions of their home countries to create a restaurant that might just be the best new fine dining arrival of 2019. 

Situated in the room that formerly housed Viajante and The Typing Room, the Da Terra setting is relaxed and refined with a stripped-back and minimalist aesthetic with a monochrome slate grey playing off white surfaces. We were sat at a broad circular table in front of the open-plan kitchen, so close to the action that it felt like ringside seating. The austerity allows the dishes to really shine, and the plating is often quirky (including Lego figurines) and always spectacular.
 
We enjoyed an eight-course menu that amounted to one of our top fine dining experiences of the year. Dishes range from the ethereal to the earthy: creamy scallop intertwined with fennel and green apple in the former, while a freshly baked boule with peppercorn butter and bone marrow falling into the latter camp. Homage is paid to Rafael's heritage with a deliquescent tranche of pork belly served with black beans and an herbal crumb a la Brazilian feijoada. The meal finished in pitch perfection with a quarter of petits fours running from dulce de leche beignets to a miniature lemon tart.

For mind-bending and unabashedly hip fine dining in east London, Da Terra is on the top of its game.