Nandine — Restaurant in London

I walk through the cute and breezy restaurant and see Pary in the kitchen, she's the brains behind this place; her husband is also in and around looking useful, I think. In a world of fads and corporate investors running the restaurant game, a family enterprise like Nandine is a reassuring comfort.

The minimal menu is based on small sharing plates with a few main kebab main dishes. The friendly staff advised us to go with the sharing plates first rather than allowing our FOMO to overtake. We went with a trio of dips (hummus, muhammara and tzatziki), aubergine platter, jazzed up fries, dumplings and dandok bowl. The prices were most reasonable, as were the portion sizes. All the dishes tasted pleasant, but not iconic. It appeared to me that some of the dishes, in particular the fries, were reinventing the wheel rather striking of authenticity. Though it must be difficult to strike a balance between being completely unique, which may be too much of a stretch for potential customers, or playing safe and blending in to the point of invisibility.

Now for the dandok bowl - a dish unknown to us, made of cracked wheat and fermented yogurt. Reading the word 'fermented' in the description didn't appetize my British palette, but my partner warmed to the idea more than I did and thankfully we ordered it. This dish is really one to try with its robust flavours resembling the moreish appeal of a mac 'n' cheese.

The desserts were up on the blackboard rather than on the printed menu, I like that touch, it's exciting, dynamic and clearly I had to have some despite sitting heavy after the meal. The rose and coconut baklava was a worthy deviation from the well known teeth itchingly sweet pistachio and walnut varieties. It felt like a homemade speciality, and who could refuse such care?

I look forward to another visit, this time for the chicken and lamb kebabs as well as for the dandok...

I’ve been to Nandine many times and always enjoyed the food, but I had a super bad experience recently. I booked a late dinner at 9.15 and when we arrived they told us it would be be about a 15minute wait, half an hour goes by and we realise the table we are supposed to have paid their bill before we even arrived and have just been chatting. We had to ask them if they would mind asking them to leave considering it was now nearly 10pm and we were starving. If we hadn’t said anything I’m sure they would have left us standing there another half an hour. The meal was fine but then the bill came and it was much too high so we realised it was for a different table so we told them the mistake and they said they had lost our bill and so we had to go through everything we ordered again.

Unbelievably this wasn’t the end… The next morning I wake up to a text saying we’d left without paying!! I was quite upset at a fourth issue and having to take time out of my day to sort this out. The manger was very nice and realised they gave our lower bill to another table and that’s what caused confusion. As an apology they promised me a £50 voucher by email. I never asked for anything, she just offered it to me. That was now 2 weeks ago and they haven’t sent it or responded to any of my messages asking where it is since….. why offer me the voucher?...

Last night was the eve of Naw-Rúz – a day celebrated as the vernal equinox and new year by people across the Persianate world as well as by members of the Baha'i Faith. But my plans for the celebration fell apart at the last minute and I was left wondering: where in Camberwell could I find a Naw-Rúz party with just a few hours to go?

Nandine was the answer. A lovely Kurdish restaurant in the heart of Camberwell, Nandine was holding a special Naw-Rúz celebration with a delicious six-course set menu served on a long communal dining table. The courses of yoghurt and pickled vegetables, purred cauliflower, vegetables stuffed with piquant and savoury rice, and exceptional shanks of lamb, was one of the most refined and delicious meals I've had in some time. A luminescent photograph of a Kurdish woman in mountain dress hovered over us as upturned and unwoven traditional baskets served as lampshades all down the table. And our host, the woman business-owner and head chef, gave a wonderful speech about the foraged ingredients, the cultural offering from one British-Kurd to her diverse and happy guests, helping us all to feel at home.

Go to Nandine for the food and be touched by the hospitality....