The setting

Unwind in a picture-perfect spot in the heart of London overlooking the stunning views of the iconic Tower Bridge & Thames waterside. You can watch as the sun sets over the river and nestle yourself into this intimate destination for all occasions with a kitchen headed by knowledgeable forward-thinking chefs.

The restaurant’s cuisine is contemporary Mediterranean from the Anatolian Peninsula, with seasonal dishes from halal-certified meats to a network of farmers, ensuring fresh clean ingredients. The spices and herbs are also just as meticulously sourced.

The food and drinks

The dining itself is a joyful experience, and the menu is absolutely mind-blowing, filled with options that could take you a lifetime to choose from.

Lucky for you the staff are at hand to support you with any queries and also make recommendations on the dishes.

We started with crispy spiced shrimp and chicken which both came in a Korean glaze and the chicken was cooked to perfection. We decided to go for a Bees Knee’s mocktail alongside the dishes, and they recreated the gorgeous 1920’s classic very well. This has the perfect balance of bitter and sweet with Sicilian lemons. These dishes came out on dry ice, perfect for an Instagram-able moment and they gave a wow factor for a first dish.

We then ordered our mains: black cod and the mixed shish. The black cod came out with lemon chilli mayo, pak choi and was served with a sweet chilli sauce. The cod was beautifully cooked and the sauce was similar to what we had on the starter but with more of a kick which worked really well with the dishes flavours.

The mixed shish consisted of lamb served with coco tzatziki and chilli sauce and was beautiful.

We did sample several alcohol-free cocktails as it was such a pleasant surprise to have a space this beautiful that had so many options. Coco Grill & Lounge is well-ahead of the curve on the no-alcohol trend that’s now hitting the nation.

The cocktails don’t disappoint either! You can tell that the mixologists know their stuff when it comes to what’s going into them and you get a joyful memory with zero hangover. Win-win!

Overall

I have to massively praise the staff whose attentiveness was second to none throughout the whole experience, they truly go above and beyond. The venue is dazzling and chic with a wonderful ambience for evenings with friends and loved ones, this feels like a wonderful spot to bring people visiting the city too, especially with the iconic tower bridge facing you.

For anyone thinking that being an alcohol-free venue means ‘less than’ in any way, scrap that mindset because it is not true!

Coco Grill & Lounge offers comfortable surroundings, for a lively, indulgent dining experience and date night spot.

Our meal would cost approximately £85 per person for three courses, two cocktails each, not including the service charge.

A: 34a Shad Thames, London, SE1 2YG
W: Coco Restaurants
T: 020 7407 7999

Written by Kaya Cheshire  for Luxuria Lifestyle London and International