Paradise cove Battersea — Restaurant in London

Sugarcane London is a small, tidy Caribbean café on the Wandsworth Road serving, among other things, very good jerk chicken. The skin is crisped and blackened and has a sweet, aromatic warmth from an enthusiastic assault by a seasoning mix heavy with the wonder that is allspice. This is a restaurant review, so obviously we care about these things; the food matters and it will get its moment.

But for now, there is another story that needs to be told: that of the man responsible for the jerk chicken and all the other deep, enfolding dishes coming out of the tiny open kitchen. I first heard about Tarell Mcintosh, self-styled as Chef Tee, courtesy of his neighbours. A few weeks ago, the restaurant was broken into. The shutters were wrecked, equipment and stock filched, the till emptied. Sugarcane London, one neighbour told me, had been a labour of love for Chef Tee, who had precious few resources when he started out and now had nothing. The local community, his neighbours and customers, crowdfunded the money he needed to get the place back on its feet. We talk earnestly about the importance of neighbourhood restaurants. We talk about their significance to communities. But this suggested a next level kind of love: a next level kind of importance.

‘Cooked in the Dutch pot for four hours’: curry goat. ‘Cooked in the Dutch pot for four hours’: curry goat. Photograph: Sophia Evans/The Observer With good reason. As Chef Tee explained in the press release he put out in 2020 when the restaurant first opened (and which, to my shame, I completely missed), he grew up in care and wanted to do something for other care leavers. He is now 27, but has packed a lot into that short life: a bunch of degrees and time as a teacher, alongside jobs at restaurants such as Negril and Blues Kitchen in Brixton. He loved working and reworking Jamaican recipes at home, but by the point the pandemic arrived had decided to retrain in midwifery.

Then one morning, during a head-clearing lockdown walk, he came across what had once been a corner shop, but was now empty. He convinced the landlord to give him the lease. He bought secondhand kitchen equipment that would just about do the job. He painted the signage himself because he didn’t have the money to get anyone else to do it, and nailed together the frame of a beach shack within the shop. There are wooden struts painted red and blue, and colourful sheets of corrugated iron playing the part of sloping roofs. There are wooden tables and chairs. Within a few weeks he had enough money to employ four care leavers. As he wrote, “I’m a helper, a changer, and this is what Sugarcane London is about. I am trying to use my company as a vessel for others.” Accordingly, the words “become a part of our story” are painted in his own hand across the front.

‘Sweet, aromatic warmth’: jerk chicken. ‘Sweet, aromatic warmth’: jerk chicken. Photograph: Sophia Evans/The Observer I thought I would, not just by reporting the gloomy break-in news, or the better fable of the crowdfunder, but by eating there. Because that story starts to wobble if the food doesn’t stand up to examination. It really does. This is Chef Tee’s gentle journey around the islands. From Trinidad comes soft, flaky roti with a deep, sweet and sticky spiced gravy for dunking into and, as ever, if no one is looking, a little light sippage. Although, even if they were looking, no one would really care. It’s not that kind of...

Disastrous Mother’s Day Experience at Paradise Cove

I was really looking forward to celebrating Mother’s Day at Paradise Cove in Battersea, but what should have been a special occasion turned into an absolute nightmare—thanks to the owner and chef T.

Food Delays & Poor Service Despite having a booking, our food arrived 2.5 hours late—completely unacceptable for a restaurant. To make matters worse, instead of taking accountability, the owner spent more time blaming a young waitress (who was actually the only saving grace of the night, hence the 2 stars for service).

Unacceptable Treatment We were reprimanded for not including a small child in the reservation. Instead of accommodating the situation professionally, we were made to feel like an inconvenience. There was no goodwill gesture—not even a free drink after complaining he strained himself and offered 20% off the bill insulting.

Food Disappointment • Pre-set menu: We weren’t even served what we originally ordered; they imposed their own set menu on us. Absolutely no rice and peas lol yet it’s carribean! • Lack of freshness: Nothing tasted authentic or freshly made—it felt rushed and thrown together pure browning on chicken! • The only decent items: The chips (which weren’t on the original order) and fritters (though they were overly salty).

Lack of Basic Hygiene & Resources To top it all off, there weren’t enough plates, cutlery, or even a dishwasher on-site. By the time the owner finished washing cutlery for us, the food was already cold. That’s not just poor service—it’s a health hazard.

Final Insult: Blaming Others Instead of owning up to the chaos, the chef tried to blame an the waitress and for other I have seen for the same weekend he blames some invisible “agency chef”—but we know for a fact he was the one cooking all weekend (FYI his face is all over social media). Stop making excuses and do better bruv or close it simple and plain.

Final Verdict

Paradise Cove claims to “give back to the community,” but running a restaurant with poor service, unprofessionalism, and questionable hygiene standards is robbing the community, not serving it. Places like this need to be called out. I am care leaver you are not Tarell Aaron FACTS. We’ve already contacted Environmental Health—and I suggest others reading this do the same.

Avoid this place unless they get their act together and treat their customers better, rather than just food...

First and foremost i wanna say i originally found out about this establishment and Chef Tee via Instagram. Something grabbed my attention from the start. It wasn't just the food or that it was a local business. It was more the attitude, personality and humbleness of someone who is obviously grateful to be given this opportunity. The type of cuisine he specializes in helps, but there are many other west Indian restaurants i would not be this intrigued in... regardless of how good the food may or may not be.

Due to a combination or personal circumstances and the various lock-downs over the past 9 months, i have been unable to visit the Wandsworth Road site itself. At this moment in time, i'm still not in a position to do so. And as much as i would prefer for my first experience to be in store, i don't know when that will be. So i decided to order a takeaway.

I ordered half jerk chicken (with extra gravy), A slice of Carrot and almond cake and a Sarsaparilla and lychee juice. The juice was amazing. Perfect combination of both flavors. Really and truly i should of ordered two. I really had to stop myself from sipping it all before i even touched my food... It was that nice. The cake was very very nice... Fresh and the right amount of almond to compliment what a carrot cake should taste like. As for the chicken, the portion size of each quarter was very generous indeed. I am very skeptical of jerk when cooked in the oven, but to my surprise this was a very good attempt. The chicken was not dry either, so the extra gravy i order was not needed (but used anyway).

And then for the best part of the order... The FREE chocolate cake i received. I am well aware of the journey Chef Tee has had to take to arrive at were he is and in a sense, to still be operating to this day. So for me, he didn't have to do this. But this is the type of small gesture that will grab peoples attention and have them coming back. Even though there was no face to face interaction, this is customer service at its finest.

Overall, even though not completely surprised, I was very happy with my first experience and will be back in the not so distant future. And when lock-down is completely put to one side, i will take a drive down with the family, dine in and shake this mans hand...