25-27 Brewer Street,
Soho,
London,
W1F 0RR
(020) 7734 7711
The ViewLondon Review
With its Conran connections – Ned, son of Sir Terence, is the owner – and bona fide cocktail king Dick Bradsell behind the basement bar, El Camion (formerly known as El Camino) is a popular choice for Sohoites hankering after Mexican food.
The Venue
Tits! Hot and Horny. Pain 100% - no, you haven’t made a wrong turn and stumbled into one of the neighbouring sex shops, these are some of the titillating names that make up El Camion's genuinely world-class collection of bottled hot sauces, which are
visible on neat wall-mounted shelves from your seat in the compact ground floor dining space. Here, you can tuck into your burrito and sink margheritas, whilst downstairs in their petite basement bar, you can grab a discreet dark corner and enjoy drinks
carefully created by Dick Bradsell. At the stroke of midnight, the venue closes but the bar remains accessible via a separate entrance on Brewer Street. With a 3am licence there’s plenty of potential for late-night boozy sessions but you’ll need to be a
member to carry on the party.
The colourful bottles of hot sauce are undoubtedly the feature people will remember from their visit, but the rest of El Camion rolls out a consistent theme with bull skulls and horns peering down on you from the wall, mock cow-print rugs
underfoot and illustrated skeletal artwork framed in the cosy basement booth areas. There are two leather booths in the dining area, too, and you should try and bag one of these as they’re the best seats in the house.
The Atmosphere
The ground floor is already running at top capacity in the evenings and there’s a good buzz about the place. You’ll hear accents as diverse as Portuguese and Polish floating around the air. Naturally, given the location, some of the patrons in attendance
are head-to-toe in statement clothing, with one fashionsta even tottering on a pair of killer vertiginous Louboutins, a sight that causes an outbreak of shoe envy amongst the females in the room.
The Food
Nachos, burritos, tacos – these are the sort of dishes you should expect to find on the laminated menus. Additionally, a selection of fresh seafood, meat dishes and salads are available.
There’s no fussy order of service, so just pick a selection of dishes and off you go. All eyes should be on the pork carnitas burrito (£7.25) as this is one of the best dishes you’ll find on the menu. It’s served on greaseproof paper in a plastic mesh bowl and
the slow-cooked pork is completely enclosed in a floury burrito. One mouthful is enough to confirm this is a seriously good burrito – the pork is pulled, stringy and has been stewed sufficiently to create a fragrant viscous flavour. It’s wonderfully tender and
it tastes like it has garlic, thyme and bay leaves amongst many others ingredients thrown into the mix along with meaty stock which has reduced down to the consistency of a mere coating after being cooked for an eternity. Black beans are the only
companion to the stewed pork, so that means no sticky rice, sticky rice fans. A Yucatun (Mexican state) beef burrito £7.25 is also good, again it is shredded in consistency and tastes like it’s been slow-cooked but the superiority of the pork overshadows
what is still a decent burrito.
Sides of tortilla chips with guacamole (£2.50) are absolutely fine. The chips are quite plain and savoury, but the little porcelain bowl of guacamole is excellent, fresh and zingy, presumably from a dash of lime juice. Another sharing (plastic) bowl of
deep-fried jalapeno peppers and cream cheese (3 for £3) are served with a spiced sour cream dip and satisfy any urges you may have for battered food. Don’t be put off by the potential heat explosion of the peppers – they’re not too
intense and the sweetness from the peppers contrasts really well with the sourness of the cream.
The classic deep-fried pastry served with chocolate sauce (churros) is all that’s on offer for those with a sweet-tooth. Arriving hot, ridged and bent into round shapes, the pastry is best eaten by picking it up with your fingers and breaking it into strips before
dunking into the hot chocolate sauce. The sauce looks a bit oily and this is because some tequila has been added into the mix. It doesn’t overpower the chocolate taste-wise but its inclusion doesn’t enhance the experience at all.
The Drink
Dick Bradsell is so well respected in the industry that people are already coming into see him at work and say hello. Cutting a distinctive figure behind the bar, he’s already made the tight little bar in the basement his own. Margheritas make up the
majority of the cocktail list, although there are a selection of classics, too. Chances are if you approach the bar with an open mind, he’ll make a suggestion and have it shaken and poured by the time you make yourself comfortable. A pomegranate
margherita (£8.95) is garishly pink in colour and uses white tequila from the Mexican highlands (altos blanco). Served over ice in a tall tumbler the result is an eye-wateringly tart drink that you’ll not forget in a hurry.
A range of soft drinks and beers including the most excellent Negra Modelo (£4.25) make up the rest of the drinks, and you may notice one glaring omission: a wine list. Request a glass of wine and you’ll be served up a very respectable red or white but
there’s no list to speak of and it’s not even billed on the menu. This should definitely be addressed in the future.
The Last Word
Whether it’s for fun, informal Mexican food on the ground floor, or an evening of tequila-fuelled partying in the basement, El Camion makes a trip to Soho, a road worth travelling.
El Camion has been reviewed by 8 users