Rand and Burns’ 7 Deadly Sins
Two ladies, neither of whom from culinary professions, delivered a creative feast at their one off pop-up at the Dead Doll’s House in Hoxton Square last night. Taking over one of three floors (excluding the roof terrace), their Seven Deadly Sins menu was sold out in less than two days, many of the tickets to friends of the duo and attendees of previous dinner parties.
We arrived at the House and were let into the premises by a WillIam replica, a quirky Shoreditch type in a red military uniform. 
He led us into the bar/ reception and we ordered an amaretto sour and a mint julep from their concise cocktail menu chalked on the wall. Shelves stacked with off-piste spirits and vintage glassware set an era, and the room was alive with eager socialite chatter.
My amaretto sour was sweet and consistent, and could rival a dessert in presentation. The julep packing a harder punch with the whisky stating it meant business. One for the end of the night I think, or it’d be game over early doors.
Not long before 8pm we were taken upstairs. A blank canvas of a room, with black doodles drawing the images associated with a home across its walls. 32 seats in a plan awaited us, mixed to encourage introductions and conversations with strangers.
A colourful starter didn’t take long to arrive, the first of our seven deadly sins; lust. Lustful baked figs with gorgonzola and prosciutto. The cheese oozed out of the fig when sliced, a tasty and clever start to the night. My slate was clear within seconds.
Next came pride; a skinny bitch’s vanity salad. 
We were glad this was small as we were wondering how our tummies would hold all the plates. It was great to have an assortment of fresh vegetables before the slightly stodgier courses, however this was slightly overdressed for me.
Combating my criticism, next came wrath; a grilled cod with arroz verde, guacamole and wrathfully hot sauce. This, although not visually appealing, was one of my favourite courses. The cod was meaty and flavoursome, and the rice, guac and spicy sauce combined to compliment. Would be delighted to come across this dish again.
Accompanied by a delicious Pinot Noir, gluttony was on our plates, in the form of pork belly in a tomatillo sauce. This was quite a bizarre plate as the pork came shredded, and flooded with a bogey green swamp of sauce. Strange presentation, but the pork was succulent and full of flavour, and the addition of thick crunchy crackling, made this plate quite a treat.
Envy came in a cocktail glass, a green vegetable soup. Delicious and refreshing, this was a perfect palate cleanser.
By now we were verging on full, yet a stunning slow cooked rib appeared, lathered in garlic sauce with deep fried potatoes. 
This was sloth, as it’s the laziest length of time cooked meat, but truly delicious, even though the garlic had my throat in its grasp for days!
We were then granted a ten minute rest and headed to the rooftop to take in the buzz of Hoxton Square at night. Twinkling lights and a cocktail bar on the floor beneath, it would have been easy to lose the night to the terrace, however the final sin; greed, was being served up to conclude the event. An almond and mandarin cake with chocolate glaze. As I usually don’t have a sweet tooth this caught me by surprise. The sponge was light and not heavily orangey, but enough to create a perfect matrimony with the thin layer of chocolate sauce on the top.
Credit where it’s due Alanna and Emily had really put the thought in for this event, and it was lovely to finish with them presented to the room and heartily applauded. I thoroughly enjoyed the Dead Doll’s House pop-up experience, Thursdays for probational pop-ups and weekends for successful residencies. Hoping we might take the JRB experience there this summer.
Whose Boots Are Those Shoes? 