BiBi is a new London restaurant that is serving up traditional Indian cuisine in a contemporary European style.
‘BiBi’, Urdu for ‘lady of the house’, is used as a term of endearment for grandmothers across the Indian subcontinent, and much of the restaurant’s menu and aesthetic is inspired by the comforting and flavourful Indian cooking traditions of chef Chet Sharma’s own BiBi.
Prior to working at some of Europe’s most prestigious restaurants (Mugaritz, Moor Hall, and L’Enclume) Sharma was an Oxford-educated physicist, and his penchant for mathematical precision is on display at BiBi.
The BiBi fare
The menu is divided into four sections – snacks, chaat, sigree, and sides – all of which are ideal for sharing.
Chettinad Chicken Liver Burgers are one of the bite-sized snacks on BiBi's menu
Curb your hunger with some savoury snacks, such as crispy Kurkure Sweetcorn or mini Chettinad Chicken Liver Burgers in a buttery maska bun; followed dished from the chaat menu, such as Raw Beef Pepper Fry, a dry-aged Dexter top round with a coconut ash dosa and ginger pickle, or Gondhoraj Scallop with scallop roe, chaat masala and jalapeño.
Save room though for the real showstoppers in the sigree, or grill, section, which features mouthwatering meats like Green Chukh Masala Thigh, Four-Pepper Lobster, and a Dagad Phool Lamb Rump.
BiBi serves up a variety of colourful dishes including Orkney Scallop Nimbu Pani and Nashpati Bhel
The veggie options are just as tempting, with dishes like Buffalo Milk Paneer and Truffle Millet, all well paired with sides like grass-fed Ghee Daal and Rumali Roti.
Celebrate the experience with a bright, flavourful cocktail like the Champagne Lassi, Sparkling Tea (a mixture of vodka, Napalese cherry blossom tea and fermented rose petal), or an Ice Gola (tequila, calamansi, apple marigold and chaat masala).
BiBi’s Calamansi Gola cocktail
‘At BiBi we will tell the story of Indian food through a different lens,’ says Sharma. ‘Pairing impactful flavours with techniques that I have honed at some of Europe's most celebrated restaurants.
‘My style of cooking is all about marrying the richly diverse cuisines of the Indian subcontinent along with the world-class produce available to us here in the UK.’
INFORMATION
Opens 9 September 2021
bibirestaurants.com
-
ICON 4x4 goes EV, giving their classic Bronco-based restomod an electric twistThe EV Bronco is ICON 4x4’s first foray into electrifying its range of bespoke vintage off-roaders and SUVs
-
‘Dressed to Impress’ captures the vivid world of everyday fashion in the 1950s and 1960sA new photography book from The Anonymous Project showcases its subjects when they’re dressed for best, posing for events and celebrations unknown
-
Inside Camperlab’s Harry Nuriev-designed Paris store, a dramatic exercise in contrastThe Crosby Studios founder tells Wallpaper* the story behind his new store design for Mallorcan shoe brand Camperlab, which centres on an interplay between ‘crushed concrete’ and gleaming industrial design
