Shoreditch, by way of its edginess, always attracts the best. So, naturally DE NADAS, which first opened in W10 last summer, headed here to Rivington Street for its second site and East London’s first Argentinian empanadaría.
Its bright yellow facade was the most inviting thing we spotted as we sauntered around Shoreditch on a bitterly cold winter’s afternoon. We stepped inside to a space ripe for people-watching; a compact seating area looks out to the street. We hope this explains the two hours we sat inside eating, drinking and commenting on everyone that walked by.
Behind the counter were 15 varieties of empanadas ranging from vegetarian, vegan, meat options and, just in time for Christmas, the Turkeynadawith roast turkey, caramelised leeks, juicy cranberry sauce and crispy sage. Shaped-by-hand, with 100% Argentinian dough, DE NADAS’ empanadas are baked fresh daily. Vegetarian and vegan empanadas include Squash & Kale, Smoked Malbec & Cheese with smoked cheddar, caramelised Malbec and onion, the Blue Cheese & Pear with blue cheese, pear and mozzarella and Creamy Spinach with spinach, bechamel, peppers and parmesan. Meat options include Classic Beef with peppers, olives and aji molido, Creamy Chicken with spring onion and bechamel, Chorizo with cherry tomatoes and mozzarella and Ham & Cheese with mozzarella, cheddar and bechamel.
We chose a mixed box of 12 vegetarian and meat with a large portion of chimichurri for dipping. The Chorizo was packed full of cherry tomatoes that balanced the kick of the chorizo. The Ham & Cheese oozed gooey goodness and the Creamy Chicken’s filling burst out as we sliced it in half. Our favourite was the Smoked Malbec & Cheese which warmed us from within on this blustery day. Of course, in keeping with the festive spirit we tucked in to the Turkeynada which was simply everything that is joyfully Christmas encased in pastry.
So, how exactly do you eat these diving little parcels of happiness? A glass of Argentinian red wine, of course, is the perfect pairing which DE NADAS offers by the glass as well as by the bottle. Our introduction to Argentinian empanadas was wrapped up on a high note with a traditional alfajores with dulce de leche squelching out of the sides.
As we left, we could barely stop talking about how incredibly tasty this offering was and how much we enjoyed the experience. We delighted in the simple pleasure of whiling away the hours as we sat by a window, eating snacks and sipping on a drink. In London’s immense landscape of formal dining (let’s face it, it’s formal even when it’s informal) we couldn’t help feeling that this is what the city had been missing all along. DE NADAS is the experience we didn’t know we needed.
“De nada” in Spanish translates to English as “it’s nothing”. We’d have to disagree. Because DE NADAS is really something.
De Nada Shoreditch
65A Rivington St, London EC2A 3QQ
