37 Richmond Road,
Kingston upon Thames,
Surrey,
KT2 5BW
(020) 8549 4988
The ViewLondon Review
Opened in 2010, this friendly neighbourhood restaurant could offer just what the locals want: affordable, tasty food in a fun environment that’s a bit different. A short walk from Kingston station, it would have been easy to ape all the other fast food joints that proliferate here, but El Peyote tries a bit harder.
The Venue
In a secondary parade of shops, a real effort has been made to make this an interesting place. A Volkswagen Beetle has been cut in two and a bench seat made of the chassis; there’s a bar area with relaxing sofa; and the tiling is reminiscent of a Mexican cantina. However, the star of this show is definitely the food; they name it 'Mexiterranean' and it’s all home made, mostly to order.
The Atmosphere
Even on an early weekday evening, it is fairly brisk with customers: a birthday party group, several couples – some just drinking cocktails - and a foursome, so there's quite a buzz about the place. Mexican background music puts you in a good mood and there's live music at the weekends.
The Food
Kick off with a tasting plate of five starters (four cold, one hot for £9.95) that showcase what is good about this place – fresh food, simply prepared. These might be a tabbouleh type dish with fresh parsley and bulgur wheat; black-eyed beans in olive oil; chicken liver pate with passion fruit; squid rings in vodka batter or goat’s cheese and Braeburn apple quesadillas. Stars of the show though, are definitely the burritos, fajitas and enchiladas. Don’t worry if you don’t know the difference – one is covered with sauce, one isn’t and one you fill yourself – all is revealed by the helpful staff. These savoury wheat tortillas are stuffed with chicken or beef, before juicy char-grilled red and green peppers, aubergine and onion are added. Accompanying this is a bowl of chunky, fresh, just-made guacamole and a salad of leaves, carrots and tomato, lightly dressed with vinaigrette. Several other choices are available from the menu for those who like something plain – for example rib eye steak with rosemary potatoes and Mexican sweet corn; or for fish lovers there is swordfish steak with garlic potatoes and mango salsa. So often, desserts are a cop out, but here there are a choice of five and, again, they are home made. The churros – fried, doughnut-like fingers of dough - served with chilli dipping chocolate are melt in your mouth delights, as is the mango sponge cake, a generous portion made with fresh mango and served with vanilla ice cream.
The Drink
The bar serves a large selection of cocktails and beers, and red and white wine can be bought by the glass or the bottle. Live music at weekends and opening until late means it’s a good place to go for just a drink, too.
The Last Word
This is a does what it says on the tin sort of place. It’s a suburban restaurant in a shabby part of Kingston, rising above the sea of fried food chains that surround it.
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