Review: Three Little Birds, Clerkenwell

Style Points: 3/5
Price: ££
Overall: 4/5

Two weeks before our visit, this charming pop-up arrived on the scene. Three Little Birds is located short walk away from the hustle and bustle of Chancery Lane and is the latest installment from A Taste Pop Ups, Three Little Birds is an endearing mixture of shabby chic and elegance with it's mis-matched cutlery and simple interior creating a homely feel, teamed with a classic atmosphere of fine-dining.

When we arrived we were greeted by one-man-wonder Chef and Founder Chris Jordan for an intimate seasonal Aussie-inspired 5-course meal. Chris is usually joined by like-minded chef Alejandro Diaz who shares his fond passion and appreciation for locally sourced fresh and delicious dishes.

Would I Want Seconds?

We had a tasting menu which was great as we were able to sample a range of dishes from gazpacho to quail.

First up, much to my surprise was kombucha tasting. Three types of fermented tea were placed before us: mint, citra hop and black tea. These are made in-house by partners 'Stir Coffee'. We tasted each one individually, sometimes twice just to be sure. My guest and I were joint in our decision, our favourite was the mint - sweet and sharp like a virgin mojito, second fave was like a peach mint tea and our least favourite was the black tea as it had a slightly bitter taste which is quite an acquired taste.

Kombucha tasting

After sampling the teas, we jumped straight into the next course which was a small serving of cucumber gazpacho with kombucha jelly. It tasted very fresh, with crunchy ribbons of cucumber and we detected lemon notes. The temperature was luke warm which went down better than it being too cool.

Next, we are served roasted quail with pickled summer vegetables and herb dressing. This was tender and full of flavour but quite a fiddly little bird, you've got to do a bit of work to get to the good meat as there is also some bone and fat but maybe I'm just less acquainted with this particular meat.

Our next dish is confit sea trout and tomato with celeriac and yoghurt purée, crisp skin and basil. The crisp skin cooked to a crunchy texture and served on the side was such an interesting addition to the dish. The fish was very soft/moist and completely fell away when you cut it. Very pleasant, although it could perhaps be too soft for some tastes. Everything in the meal is perfectly balanced.

It's dessert time! I'm pleased to see it's chocolate and sour cherry - crumbled brownie with a cherry, a shard of caramelised sugar and yoghurt coming my way. Cherries are sourced locally and the course as a whole is the perfect consistency.

Because one dessert is never quite enough, here's part deux. Strawberry and cream with rosemary and sugar. The sweet and fresh strawberries are paired with biscuit crumble and heavenly cream. This was a sweet, delightful combination and the tastes complimented each other. The cream was so delicious I almost forgot I was only supposed to have a little taste! That will teach me for forgetting to inform the chef I'm a dairy free diner.

We finished with a small glass of dessert wine (2010 chateau Loupiac Gaudiet). This was quite sweet and sharp and isn't something I would typically have a whole glass of but it cleared the palette after dessert and rounded off our meal quite nicely.

Roasted quail

Confit sea trout

Chocolate and sour cherry

Strawberry and cream

Could I Afford Seconds?

Three Little Birds serves stunning food at reasonable prices. The food here is unique and exemplary and as a result the tasting menus are well worth the prices of the adventure it provides. 

Overall?

When Chris wasn't tirelessly working his culinary magic in the kitchen, he took the time between courses to explain dishes and entertain our 'guess the flavour' game we didn't even realise we had been playing. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my meal as I felt like I was discovering something new with the innovative courses that came my way and I would be interested to try more options as I've never tasted Australian cuisine before. He told us that the largest group he has hosted so far is a group of 30 and he has some great events coming up before they leave their current location.

Twitter: @3lilbirdsLDN
E-mail: info@threelittlebirdsldn.co.uk
Address: 59 Mount Pleasant, Clerkenwell, WC1X 0AY
Closest Tube Station: Chancery Lane