Restaurant Review: Miznon, Soho London
THERE’S A PITA PARTY IN MY MOUTH AND EVERYONE’S INVITED!
Eyal Shani, the international pita tycoon and star of Israeli Masterchef, has taken to the streets of London and added a new Miznon to his existing repertoire of Middle Eastern restaurants in Tel Aviv, Paris, Vienna, New York, Singapore and Melbourne.
Miznon has recently opened at 8-12 Broadwick Street in Soho, London
Mr Shani hates concepts, apparently. He says that concepts are manipulative: they are an attempt to look down from above and “find a system that will succeed”. I reflected on this thought as I meandered through Soho on a sunny Sunday afternoon and I asked myself, what happens in the absence of a system? It turns out the answer is creative chaos. The type of creativity that is ostentatious and unrestrained, but brilliant and bonkers in equal measure.
The philosophy of pita
Absolutely nothing on the menu made any sense to me, whatsoever. The dishes are broadly divided into “pita” and “out of a pita”. The pita part is prefaced with a fated description of each pita being birthed differently (“it’s about recreation and not an assembling”), and being destined for you, and only you. It’s not the wizard that chooses the wand, etc.
An intriguing menu…
The “out of a pita” section of the menu comprises what I think is a layered dish of yoghurt, charred onion, steaks, fresh greens and sauces (“a whole feast that paints your table”), as well as a selection of veggie and meat mezze to be mixed and matched (featuring, among others “a run over potato” and a “sac de coq”). Whilst I’m sure that some people will think that these descriptions are pretentious (and/or just plain weird), I, on the other hand, rejoiced in the authenticity of Shani’s imperfect English and his bold decision to opt for Comic Sans throughout.
But anyway, I didn’t come here for the unassuming font choices. I CAME HERE FOR THE PITAS. Soft, pillowy pitas that my fiancé said he wanted to curl up and fall asleep in having just finished a night shift at the hospital. As you may already know, Shani’s ethos is to translate whole cities into one pita, and we see here some obvious nods to the very best that British cuisine has to offer. We’re missing chicken tikka masala, but other firm favourites featuring at Miznon Soho include a full English breakfast, a cottage pie, a traditional spag bol and a folded burger with English cheddar cheese. I, however, opted for the fish and chips: a Tel Aviv twist on a traditional chip butty with a lightly fried piece of cod, crispy potatoes with a fluffy interior, and a red onion pickle with coriander that added a sharp and tangy sweetness.
Pictured here: “your first fish and chips in a pita”
We also threw in a few (too many) sides: yet more pita, a whole slow-roasted cauliflower slathered in butter, some silky-smooth hummus topped with beef ragu, and finally, “naked tomatoes slaughtered in front of your eyes”. Loosely translated, the latter dish consists of three types of tomatoes which have been macerated in pepper, salt, olive oil and are presumably left to steep in their own juices for several hours. The most remarkable thing about this dish was that the tomatoes were served at exactly the right temperature. This might not sound like a remarkable thing to say, but the devil is always in the detail. Any tomato that is refrigerated below c. 12 degrees Celsius will inevitably suffer a terrible affliction known as “thermal shock”, causing irreversible genetic changes which will eradicate its flavour, FOREVER. It is amazing how many times I’ve eaten at high-end restaurants and been served stone-cold tomatoes, and with a side of audacity that they think I wouldn’t notice! But not at Miznon, and that’s the tell-tale sign that each ingredient has been carefully respected to maximise taste and texture.
Also pictured: pita with “magic mushrooms”, whole roasted cauliflower, hummus and “naked tomatoes slaughtered in front of your eyes”
Shani seems to have developed some sort of metaphysical connection to all of his ingredients, but in particular the humble tomato. He once said in an interview that “on the question of whether a tomato is a tomato, the answer will always be no. It’s not a tomato, it’s something else”. I don’t know what that means. But I do know that the tomatoes and all the other dishes that we tried at Miznon were perfectly seasoned, lovingly prepared and exploding with delicious flavours.
Restaurant front lined with Shani’s signature cauliflowers
