Bristol’s best indie eats right now

It’s been a while since I’ve written about food in my home city of Bristol. It’s a combination of the ease of sticking a picture up on Instagram or writing a tweet mixed with my reticence to fill the blog with reviews of single places that people might not be able to visit. I spoke a lot about my feelings on bloggers reviewing restaurants after spending a month eating at Bill’s. It’s not that I’m against it, more that I only want talk about places I am confident in, especially places in my own city.

I’m typing this on a plane – en route to Kaunas for a long weekend with friends. Since we took off, my fingers have been flying over the keys. I’m trapped in a fast-moving tube with no wi-fi and importantly, no distractions. I have time FINALLY to actually write. If I’m honest, I’m on such a flow right now, I’m wishing we were flying a bit further afield so I can get more thoughts down before the real world reappears.

It dawned on me as I sat down alone on this plane, separated from Dave and the others thanks to Ryanair charging for everything, that I’ve eaten some really GREAT food in Bristol over the last month or two. None of it was expensive either. And, seeing as this is my blog and I can write whatever the hell I want – I thought I’d do a kind of Bristol’s best indie eats round-up. Here goes…

Bambalan

Despite having opened aaages ago and being a well-known and popular place, for some reason, up until a few weeks ago, I’d never been to Bambalan. In fact, the only reason we went at all was because it was Dave’s birthday and we wanted somewhere near to work. This is a fun place – somewhere to go with a group of friends after work and the wrap around balcony with views over the habourside make it perfect for summer evenings. We’ll definitely return then although with a good coat on, even the spring sun hits the spot – we visited in mid February!

The menu is varied – imagine your local loungers bar with better food and a fondness of middle eastern, mediterranean flavours. There is a charcoal robata grill too, adding another dimension to this fun menu. We used Wriggle to grab a couple of the Chicken ‘Babs from the lunch menu and they were bloody delicious, not to mention a complete bargain! Packed with well cooked meat and bags of flavour. It was the best pub lunch I’ve eaten for a long time and I’m keen to return and try their bigger menu for dinner.

Find them here:

Tsukemono

So good I visited twice in one week. These guys are definitely topping my list of Bristol’s best indie eats right now. This pop up is run by Adam and Iris, neither of whom are Japanese but by heck they know what they’re doing! Their take on #notramen Japanese soul food is warming, filling and delicious. During their pop up at Bristol Spirit, I acquainted myself with almost the entire menu and there was nothing I wouldn’t order again. Even the kimchi was good and I’m very fussy when it comes to kimchi.

Stand outs for me were the ‘marmite of starters’ furofuki daikon—juicy radish simmered with a miso reduction—and the hasu udon – thick noodles topped with kaarage fried chicken. That said, the pork curry udon and okonomiyaki were also incredibly tasty!

These guys move around as they are a pop up – best way to find out where they are next is online or on their instagram.

Hoba Kebab

This one was a long time coming. About a year ago, Hope invited me to come along and try Hoba Kebab during their residency at the Robin Hood pub on St Michael’s Hill. Somehow, we were unable to find a date and roll on a WHOLE YEAR, she dropped me a note to say they would be back at the Robin Hood and did I fancy popping in. Yes, yes I did.

I love love what Hope is doing at Hoba Kebab. A small, perfectly formed menu which features kebabs (obvs) and a couple of different sides. That’s it. The bread… oh the bread… is what makes everything come together. It’s Turkish sesame bread which is made with Joe’s Bakery, inspired by the Berlin kebab scene. Fillings include things like 24hr marinated and chargrilled chicken and sticky maple glazed jackfruit loaded into that heavenly bread with pickles, sauces, salad and all sorts of other yummy bits.

A shout out too, to the vegan dirty fries and baba ghanoush we ate on our visit. The fries were SO moreish, you’d have no idea that the cheese sauce wasn’t full dairy. Plus, anything with crispy shallots and jalapeños on it gets my vote. We also had a divine plate of chargrilled tenderstem brocoli, topped with tahini sauce and chilli flakes. Not your standard kebab side but delicious none the less. I give Hoba Kebab a full 10/10 and cannot wait to visit again soon!

Hoba Kebab tend to move around a lot as they are a pop up – best way to find out where they are next is online or on their instagram.

Squeezed

Alex and his tiny burger joint are getting a lot of hype right now since winning National Burger Chef of the year. And deservedly so. I hadn’t been for a long time but the other night, my boss and I headed over there to grab something to eat before an evening event. I went for the NY Seoul and it quite figuratively blew my mind. A consistent favourite of mine when it comes to Bristol’s best indie eats.

For a long time friends of ours have been going on and on about Squeezed. Although I remember loving it, I’ve always maintained that for a big dirty burger treat, it’s got to be Oowee. But after last week’s performance, you know what? I’m not convinced!! I’ll be headed back soon for a confirmation meal just to make sure.

Find them here: 

Izakaya

The second Japanese place on the list – can you tell I’m getting ready for a trip there in May? Izakaya opened quietly last year, to very little fanfare. They aren’t really active on social media and I doubt they’ll ever read this. But it doesn’t matter because their food is awesome.

With badly designed (expect comic sans), wipe clean menus and little in the way of comfort, this place is never going to be  one for fine dining. But, if you want good honest food which won’t break the bank and is tasty, it’s perfect. We’ve been on several occasions now, once for lunch on my birthday and a couple of times after work with friends. The pork katsu is comforting and familiar thanks to that thick, packet mix curry sauce. They also do a tofu version which is pretty decent if you’re veggie. The ramen is good too but don’t expect that deeply Unami taste you get from a proper beef bone broth.  

The best thing? It’s cheap and really great value. They also do early bird and lunch time offers so you can have your fill for way under a tenner! Enjoy.

Find them here: 

So there you have it, my round-up of Bristol’s best indie eats right now. The best way to see what’s happening, where they’re popping up and to sneak a peek at menus is to follow them on social. If you do go, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below! And where/who have I missed off this list?