Above: Images of the Interior of Sabor
Strangely enough, it is the mighty and mysterious (or at least for my wholly tech-unsavvy brain) reach of Instagram, to which I owe a great deal of gratitude for having steered me, however circuitously, towards an experience of Sabor in London a few weeks ago, when a U.K. based journalist, who had chanced upon and appreciated my review of restaurant Naar, located in Kasauli, India, happened to contact me on the messaging service of the social media platform, extending an invitation to lunch at a restaurant of my choice should I ever happen to find myself in London …
… I hadn’t been back to London for six years, and at the time of this message exchange had no intention of returning, the context of my fabulous former life there having come full circle, punctuated by the premature loss of a very special friend …
… But then a pre-60th birthday celebration of another old friend, in addition to my inextinguishable curiosity regarding the lunch invitation, conspired to make me take the decision to spend a week-end in London during an autumn walkabout in Paris, and thus I enjoyed this most fortunate culinary experience, which I can say with complete confidence, represents some of the best of Spanish cuisine in London.
Above: A young, little too immature but perfectly pleasant wine selected by the Sommelier
The atmosphere of bonhomie that prevails at Sabor is remarkable, strangers drawn to one another solely by a shared love of food, chatting amiably at the counter and bar seating sections of the restaurant (the slightly more formal dining is located on the first floor, where I lunched), until they permit themselves, out of respect, if not reverence for the culinary arts, to be silenced by the announcement of service of the food; below are images of both the permanent menu and specials, the latter source of two of the tapas we (my host and I) ordered that day.
Above: Permanent Menu
Below: Daily Specials
The first of the tapas served, however, belonged to the permanent menu, and that was the ‘Crisp Fried Pig’s ears, Quince Aioli’, which were quite literally equivalent to crisps and at first bite gave one the impression of being like absolutely anything, seductive solely because of the texture and forever favourite aioli accompaniment…but then suddenly, the subtle yet distinctive bouquet and flavour of lard emerge, both on the palate and in the after taste, elevating the dish to everything but ordinary, like that little patch of embroidery that distinguishes a particular style of garment from its peers.
Above: Crisp Fried Pig’s ears, Quince Aioli
Next up, one of the daily specials, an open sandwich of Coca bread (somewhere between a focaccia & ciabatta), with house made ricotta, fresh figs and Iberico ham, was a sensuous treat where each element, whilst expressing its own personality, elegantly complements the others, like a perfectly conducted orchestra in which every instrument gives priority to the whole.
Above: Coca, Figs & Ricotta
Then came a second special of the day, which I can best describe by naming it a ‘Fairy dust’ frito of monkfish, red mullet and squid, the barely visible coating of batter so exquisitely light, furnishing one with the sensation of an imagined crunch on the palate, yielding a gustatory headiness in the aftermath that was nothing short of other-worldly…in short a stupendously accomplished and delicious frito misto.
Above: Pescaito Frito, Lime Aioli
The last tapa, sourced once again from the permanent menu, was for me the veritable pre-piece de resistance: Morcilla, aka blood sausage which has an inexplicable power over my palate, irrespective of how well or not it is cooked … this particular rendition, somewhat like a terrine of blood sausage and sticky rice, whilst lacking the charred outer surface that I so love, was especially clever and inarguably pleasing by way of its combination with the most delectable Txistorra sausages and piquillo peppers, the resulting profile of textures and flavours a resounding success …
Above: Morcilla de Burgos & Txistorra
… And then at last, the Grand Finale, one of the few main courses on the menu to be shared by a minimum 2, and that was the Segovian Suckling Pig, its pedigree stated in no uncertain terms on the menu, and it was everything a masterfully executed suckling pig is reputed to be, right from its crackling skin to the meltingly soft and saturated meat beneath, the veritable cherry on the icing on the cake being the way it was carved up using a plate …
Above: Segovian Suckling Pig
… alas, like most of the restaurants I choose to write about for Diyasethi.com, this review shall remain a work in progress until I go back again … and again, and again …. THE END
October 2025