Birthday treat - a mixed experience

It’s my birthday so I get to choose where we go. I’d seen Asia de Cuba online several times, so after checking a few other options, that’s what I go for when I see that toptable have an offer on a 2-course set meal with mojito. The restaurant is in the St Marin’s hotel on St Martin’s Lane, and is totally anonymous from the outside, looking more like an office block. Inside it is also rather characterless, despite their efforts. It’s light and there are round pillars with Cuban photos or books and retro radios; there are low slung filament light bulbs over every table, giving little light and just creating a network of wires; it’s not that busy and there’s no buzz to the place. It’s not helped by us being shown to a table down the far end of the restaurant, where one of us effectively has to look at the wall.

We’d checked the menu on the website beforehand to make sure there were things on the set menu we’d like.  But we’d also been warned when the restaurant rang to confirm our booking that the menu had been recently changed, making it “better and cheaper” – unlikely we thought.  So it was without much surprise that we saw that the dishes we’d liked were no longer available, and the main course options came down to salmon, chicken, a sandwich or tofu. The old menu is still on the website, so be warned.  The price has been reduced from £22 to £18.50, but that’s not really the point

The wine list is also pretty scary, with nothing under £25; we select an Australian Viognier for £29.50.  So I’m feeling a bit scratchy when the cheery waitress arrives, and I demand my mojito - they’re on their way she claims, and within seconds they arrive. They are very good, served in small jam jars, with the clean fresh mint and a good kick of tequila, so my mood lifts a little.

The waitress is very chatty, clinking our glasses together as they arrive. She squats down to take our order, so she is at our eye-level. This could feel pretty patronising, but she gets away with it with her chatter.  There is a trio of ceviche on offer at an extra £10, so choose that. This causes some confusion, as it doesn’t actually count as one of the two courses – which I means I have to order a dessert as well.  I’m puzzled by this, but as I’d been prepared to pay the £10 “supplement” anyway, actually I come out ahead.

The trio comprises grouper, snapper and salmon. The grouper is very sharp and freshly citrus tasting; the snapper a bit dull, and the salmon comes with an avocado puree and a chilli kick. B unusually goes for the miso soup with chicken – also with plenty of chilli.

B’s main course is the roasted salmon with sweet soy topping and a cucumber escabeche. Although this sounds a little dull, actually the fish had plenty of flavour and was nicely cooked, and the cucumber was good, so the dish worked better than expected. My chicken “with BBQ sauce” and sticky rice was a large portion of sliced chicken breast with just a little (enough) sauce that didn’t dominate its juiciness.  Again a dish that exceeded expectations.  My “extra” dessert was a “Cuban coffee brownie”, served with coffee ice-cream – very good.

There’s a whopping 15% service to add to the bill – and then the credit card bill is left open for “additional gratuity”. So that takes the total to £122 with 2 bottles of wine, which I think was a bit high for what it was (though you could have got away with £37 if you’d stuck to the one mojito and water).  If we’d seen the revised menu online, I doubt if we’d have booked it, but as it was I was glad to have given it a go. If go a la carte, starters were £6 to £10 and mains £18 to £25 – maybe worth it to get what you want.