Bistroteque

Bistroteque Review

You'll need a GPS or Google Maps to find this East London fashionista G-spot, and all-round cool-hunters HQ, down a side alley in jam-hot Bethnal Green. Once inside, the striking first-floor loft dining space and Manchichi bar is a bubbly post-industrial chic setting of all-white tiled walls and white concrete floor, factory pipes and beams, Crittal windows, dangly lights, marble-top tables, and black bentwood chairs. All the men seem to wear caps, spatz, 'tashes, Trilbys, skinny Acne jeans, or '30s tweed three-piece deer-stalker suits, while the Alexa Chung lookalike women are in capes, Emmanuelle 2 organza get-ups, and oversized Scooby-Doo specs. Acomplished French and English-based dishes range from steak tartar, Croque Madame, and towering cheeseburgers, to cod and clams, or lamb rump with chestnuts and sage. Fashion-favorite puds like Melba toast or brioche and butter pudding stand out, and be sure to catch Xavior, the resident pianist, at weekend brunch, camping up everything fom Girls Aloud to Katy Perry on the baby grand.