Model Eats: Ember YardBy Gemma Perlin
Models do eat. We promise. We watched one eat a three-course meal. Ember Yard, a new venture from the Salt Group. opened in Soho early this year. We liked the low lighting, the tapas bar and the grill in the middle that made us feel like we had just drifted in off the street in Barcelona. We took Duncan Proctor along for the first in our Model Eats column.
Who: Duncan Proctor, a fresh-faced rising star that has walked for the likes of Duckie Brown, Philip Lim and Marc Jacobs in London, Paris and New York Fashion Weeks. A former part-time chef from Brighton, he made his debut on the runway with Prada last June, and hasn’t looked back since.
What we spoke about: Duncan’s recent move from New York to Sussex, how being a model is certainly not glamorous, walking for Prada in Milan and the tightness of Yves Saint Laurent trousers. And how gin is a depressive drink.
What we ate: The menu is extensive. Bar snacks, charcuterie, cheeses, then meat and fish dishes. They recommend four plates per person. We accidentally received our neighbours’ food, so it’s fair to say we over-ordered. We started with skewers of the plumpest chorizo, cheese with the sweet addition of quince.
The meat was the star of the show. Grilled iberico presa with whipped jamon butter, which translated as the most tender, succulent ribs I have had the pleasure of tasting. Roasted salt marsh lamb with roasted aubergine and salsa verde followed, the incredibly succulent lamb chops offset by a bracing spicy salsa.
Grilled pineapple resting on some pineapple sorbet with a yoghurt mousse gave a tangy and refreshing end to the evening. Duncan sadly was too full for donuts. Models, eh.
What we drank: Ember Yard has an eclectic mix of cocktails. I opted for Geppetto’s Tonica, a mix of homemade tonic, gin and grapefruit, which tasted surprisingly cleansing and light. Duncan went for the Manhattan, a homage to the last two months he has spent there working .
Dinner for 2: £90 with cocktails
Ember Yard is at 60 Berwick Street, W1F 8SU