We'd heard about Six by Nico a few years ago when visiting Edinburgh, but were unable to secure a reservation at the time. There are now nine branches in total; Dublin, Belfast Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Liverpool, Manchester, London Fitzrovia, and the branch we dined at in Canary Wharf.
Six by Nico is a clever concept, six story themed courses that change every six weeks. A small enough menu for the chefs to master, but changing fast enough that they have to stay on top of their skills and techniques.
These are the dishes and wines that we enjoyed on the Miami to Ibiza menu. Our vegetarian friend was pleased with his alternative menu, and our gluten-free friend was able to have adapted dishes.
COURSE 1: The Ibiza Sunset
Paella bombas, saffron Emulsion with roasted red pepper sauce, wild garlic oil topped with crispy Chorizo.
This looked pretty but was probably our least favourite dish. I thought that the red pepper sauce was the consistency of Heinz tomato soup and that the flavour actually clashed with the fried paella ball (rather like arancini)
COURSE 2: Miami Beach
Seared tuna, with bonito emulsion, seared cucumber, griddled spring onion and chilli Ponzu dressing.
Again a pretty plate of food, I didn't get any heat from the chilli and found the ponzu made it too salty for my taste. I was the outlier on this, the rest of the party were happy with the seasoning. MATCHING WINE The Dot Austrian Nut, Pinot Blanc, Weingut Pfaffl, Niederösterreich, Austria
This wine was the hit of the evening - we all really enjoyed this and it was an excellent match to the tuna.
COURSE 3: The Cuban
Pressed pork sandwich with mustard mayo, a gherkin relish, choucroute, pickled mustard seeds and crispy kale.
This was one of the top 2 dishes for us. The pork was incredibly tender and the whole thing just delicious. MATCHING WINE Campo Nuevo Viura, Bodegas Agronavarra, Navarra, Spain
COURSE 4: Es Vedra
Sea Bass with grapes, samphire, celery, smoked potato, verjus and ajo blanco. The sea bass was perfectly cooked with a lovely crispy skin, but strangely the samphire didn't have much flavour. Maybe we were spoilt by picking it from the beach in the Outer Hebrides last year.
MATCHING WINE Gozatu Txakoli, Astobiza, Ayala Valley, Spain
COURSE 5: Churrasco
Rump steak plus a Bbq rib served with a smoked emulsion, onions and chimichurri. This was again a very nicely cooked piece of meat, very tender indeed. The second of the top two dishes for us.
MATCHING WINE Merlot 2015, Irgum Burgum, Villany, Hungary
This needed to have been aerated, as a result of it being freshly opened it lacked body I thought.
COURSE 6: Little Havana
Coconut & rum parfait on a slither of pineapple served with a brandy snap cigar, and passion fruit mousse with white chocolate namelaka and the drama of Pina Colada being poured over the dish. MATCHING WINE Moscatel De Setúbal, Bacalhôa, Setúbal, Portugal
We had a really lovely evening, but the place was pretty noisy with a lively younger crowd. It's the kind of place that young couples go when they are trying to impress. I would say that we aren't the target market for Six by Nico, even if we did dine as a group of 6! This is a step up from bigger restaurant chains, but it's not fine dining, and the pricing reflects that; for six courses the food is keenly priced (by London standards at least).
Six Course Tasting Menu - £44
Matching Wines - £35
Address: 6 Chancellor Passage Canary Wharf London E14 5EA
E: london.canarywharf@sixbynico.co.uk
T: 02039 123 334
