Though London’s tastes have evolved since Sam and Sam Clark’s Moro opened in 1997, the restaurant is still name-checked by enthusiasts as the blueprint for perfecting the elegant, communal style of dining the city has fallen in love with. Therefore, it’s of little surprise that two decades later, the duo are still enlightening younger contemporaries. Their third and latest venture, Morito, combines the Southern Spanish and Moorish flavours the pair are known for, along with a dash of the post-industrial terroir of London’s Hackney.
The space - a high-ceilinged expanse of polished concrete and large windows – was co-designed with longtime collaborator Dillwyn Smith, who was entrusted to merge the room’s rawness with the brand’s evocative interiors, starting with the bar. ‘Finding the Azul Macaubas marble for the horseshoe bar was the key’, he says. ‘It was a bold move that informed the other design decisions. The Moors created spaces in which all ones sense are stimulated’. Traditional fish scale tiles adorn concrete pillars, while an open kitchen injects warmth and intimacy into the space, where chef Marianna Leivaditaki adds a dash of her Cretan heritage to the menu; the kid mechoui with goat’s curd is a standout, and always order the seafood rice if it’s on the specials board.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
195 Hackney Road
-
The most whimsical hotel Christmas trees around the worldWe round up the best hotel Christmas tree collaborations of the year, from an abstract take in Madrid to a heritage-rooted installation in Amsterdam
-
Stone dials are making a comeback: here are the watches doing it bestWatches with hard stone dials are enjoying a surge in popularity
-
These illuminating fashion interviews tell the story of style in 2024Selected by fashion features editor Jack Moss from the pages of Wallpaper*, these interviews tell the stories behind the designers who have shaped 2024 – from Kim Jones to Tory Burch, Willy Chavarria to Martine Rose
-
The most whimsical hotel Christmas trees around the world
We round up the best hotel Christmas tree collaborations of the year, from an abstract take in Madrid to a heritage-rooted installation in Amsterdam
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Hyde London City, the perfect free-spirited boltholeHyde London City, the brand’s UK hotel debut, brings contagious energy and maximalism to a Victorian classic
-
The Park: step inside Jeremy King's mid-century dinerOne of several 2024 openings from restauranteur, Jeremy King, food critic Ben McCormack books in at The Park
-
Six brilliant bars for your 2025 celebrations, hot off the Wallpaper* travel deskWallpaper’s most-read bar reviews of the year can't be wrong: here’s inspiration for your festive and new year plans, from a swanky Las Vegas lounge to a minimalist London drinking den
-
Book a table at Row on 5 in London for the dinner party of dreamsRow on 5, located on the storied Savile Row, emerges as a perfectly tailored fit for fans of fine dining
-
This picky customer finds ‘perfection’ at Nipotina, Mayfair’s new pizza and pasta jointWallpaper* contributing editor Nick Vinson reviews Nipotina, a new Italian restaurant in London offering a carefully edited menu of traditional dishes
-
Beloved Italian, Babbo finds a new home in St John's WoodBabbo, the Mayfair Italian beloved of Premier League footballers, has re-located to St John’s Wood High Street. Is NW8 the new West End?
-
Osteria del Mare brings a slice of coastal Italy to The StrandSpanking fresh fish is the house speciality in this new London restaurant with a menu inspired by the Tuscan seaside
