Antillean Restaurant Review: Unforgettable Pan-Caribbean cuisine in South London

London is a city packed with so many places to eat that you could dine somewhere new three times a day and still never make it through all of the restaurants. This is why it’s so important for restaurants to stand out. And we don’t mean with gimmicky shop-fronts or a focus on theatrics over flavour either. It needs to be somewhere that welcomes you in with open arms and you feel as welcomed as though you’re part of the furniture. Where you’re treated with care yet there’s no pretentiousness and where the food is truly outstanding. And this is where Antillean comes in.

A fine dining Pan-Caribbean Restaurant & Bar located near Southwark Underground, Antillean ticks all the boxes, front and back and creates an experience that is memorable for all the right reasons. As we head down on a slightly chilly evening in February, its location means you don’t need to spend too much time outdoors, something we’re grateful for. The exterior is neatly tucked among a row of typical London townhouses and it gives no sign of quite how surprisingly spacious the interior is. We are greeted by the team and led to a contemporary styled bar where we hop onto stools and peruse the cocktail menu. I order a pink negroni while my partner opts for the Windward Old Fashioned. Their signature cocktail list is inspired by the Antillean islands and as such features a lot of rum, citrus fruits and guava. Both cocktails pack a punch with flavour, whisking us from South London to the Caribbean – we can almost feel the sun on our faces and hear the sea lapping the shore.

After a while, we head down to the dining area, a stunning open space with high ceilings, and exposed beams. It feels relaxing here and as I sink into a booth I’m excited for the food to come. Our friendly waiter comes over to explain the menu – it’s recommended to choose a number of dishes to share tapas-style – before recommending a bottle of wine. As we sip our pinot-noir, we peruse the dishes, split into raw, small plates, large plates and extras.

The name Antillean is dervied from the beautiful islands of the Antilles and is headed up by Chef Patron, Michael Hanbury and his team. The dishes reflect the French, African, Spanish, Indian, Dutch and Chinese influences on the Caribbean, aiming to bring something new to London’s culinary tapestry.

To start, we opt for the blue swimmer crab with mango, avocado, ginger and chilli, the Chicken skewers accompanied by tomato and mango salsita and the mango salad with green papaya, tomato and spicy herb dressing. Every bite is an explosion of flavour, every put together so perfectly. The chicken was tender, the crab soft and the salad spicy without being overbearingly so.

Mains wise we shared the roast Achiote tamarind chicken that came with Antillean BBQ sauce, rice and peas, rum marinated rib eye with boniato mash and salsa verde as well as a side of lobster mac n cheese and yuca fries. As with the starters, everything was cooked perfectly, teeming with flavour and a real treat for all the senses. The rum marinated rib eye was a real highlight, as was the lobster mac n cheese that became a firm favourite.

As with any great meal, you want to save room for dessert. While it can be difficult to do so here due to the amount of mouth-watering main and starter options, there’s no way you can leave without sampling something sweet. With such a decadent selection on offer, we opted to share the chef’s selection dessert platter. Featuring  the island chocolate torte, carrot cake and rum baba it was an effortless choice. Each encapsulated a host of Caribbean flavours and being the perfect way to round off the meal without being too filling.