EL RANCHO DE LALO - Brixton

94-95 Brixton Village Market

London

SW9 8PS

I initially ended up at the Brixton Village Market, having read a review on the London Evening Standard website about the rejuvenation of this particular area over the last year, and a rather delicious sounding Caribbean place called ‘Etta’s Seafood Restaurant’ which had been receiving rave reviews. During my food pilgrimages to the capital I realised I had never visited Brixton so thought this would be the ideal time to go.

So, I arrive at the Brixton village market, and locate the rather unassuming enclosed arcade area, which fits the description i have read. Wandering through I am immediately like a kid in a toyshop. I see a fantastic looking cafés, a creperie, little delis and sop on . So many new and exciting looking places that all plans of heading straight to ‘Etta’s’ were on hold while I decided to explore a little more. As I got to the end of the arcade I noticed a rather busy looking restaurant called ‘El Rancho De Lalo’ which, through a quick look at the menu was serving Colombian cuisine.  I stick my head around the door for a closer look as the menu has me intrigued, and hear a host of Colombian accents coming from the kitchen and the diners. At this point I was fairly optimistic that I was going to receive a fairly authentic experience.

When the meal arrived it was a fairly enormous plate filled with some of the tastiest looking grilled meats alongside a range of interesting accompaniments including avocado and plaintain. The pork belly was just how it should be, crunchy with a lovely smoky flavour and soft meat, steak cooked to nearly well done, but that’s how I personally like it.  It also featured some of the best kidney beans in a rich sauce, which reminded me a bit of Mexican refried beans, and a surprisingly good combo of egg with plaintain and rice. There are those that would say it just shouldn’t work, but it did, and it was one of the most enjoyable plates of food I have had in London. It is fair to say that this dish is made for those who have big appetites. With so much meat, as well as the rice and beans you probably wouldn’t need to eat for the rest of the day if you had this at lunch! I shared this with my boyfriend and we were both fit to burst by the end.  I was impressed by some of the other diners who were tucking into one each, they'd obviously had a lot of practice!

Total meal cost £9.00