Berenjak Borough

"Berenjak is a loud, busy Persian restaurant by Borough Market where walk-ins are turned away with a polite, “Tonight? It’ll be a couple of hours”. People jostle over lamb rump kebabs and squeeze into seats next to open cabinets stuffed with glassware. But the best seats are at the counter where you can watch bread get tossed on the grill in front of you. Although the bill can quickly stack up, the best dishes aren’t the pricier, showy platters of meat. They’re baked flatbreads, which should be dipped in tangy mast o musir and smoky mirza ghasemi." - sinead cranna, rianne shlebak, jake missing, daisy meager, heidi lauth beasley

"Berenjak serves Iranian mazeh and kebabs in a corridor-like space on Romilly Street. Order the taftoon—clay tanoor-baked flatbread—and swipe through coal-cooked aubergine dips, goats’ curd with Persian shallots, and black chickpea hummus. The kebab section of the menu is a no-go for vegetarians, but the snackable corn on the cob and pickled cauliflower means there’s plenty to pick from in the sofreh section. " - heidi lauth beasley, rianne shlebak, jake missing

"Berenjak is a loud, busy Persian restaurant by Borough Market where walk-ins are turned away with a polite, “Tonight? It’ll be a couple of hours.” The space is crammed with people jostling over lamb rump kebabs, squeezing into seats next to open cabinets stuffed with glassware, and most of the exposed brick walls are covered with artworks. The best seats are at the counter where you can enjoy the buzzy atmosphere and watch bread get tossed on the grill in front of you. In short, don’t expect a quiet night at Berenjak. It’s for times when you want a sensory overload and strong negronis. Although the bill can quickly stack up, the best dishes aren’t the pricier, showy platters of meat, they’re the baked flatbreads for dipping in tangy mast o musir and smoky mirza ghasemi. " - Sinéad Cranna