Beers, they not the usual type of poison I tend to go for. Over the years I started to acquire a taste for them. I love light beers like Asahi or Chang. Spanish craft brewery Alhambra beer invited me to Coya restaurant for a gastronomic experience of a 12-course sharing pairing menu of the Peruvian cuisine.
Along the monopoly of Mayfair hotels, clubs, and restaurants, Coya is part members club, Pisco Bar and a 100-seater basement restaurant. It is also a winner of the London Lifestyle awards in 2014.
Coya was easy to get to from Green Park, passing hotels and the Hard Rock café along the way I arrived at the door to be led down to the basement to the bar. Meeting the other bloggers/press and drinking one of Alhambra Reserva 1925 beers by the bar. The brand Alhambra is named after one of the UNESCO world heritage site Alhambra Palace. Alhambra beer uses crystal clear water with an age-old recipe and the best cereals from the south of Spain.
It comes golden amber in colour and pours a fluffy head, the taste is pleasant, easy to drink, nothing too strong with bitter and sweet notes and a slight caramel finish.
Now we managed to pair the whole meal with just Alhambra reserva 1952 beer. The food at Coya is bold fun and playful, not for the faint hearted, plenty of flavours going on but still light on the stomach. Ceviche served on ice bowls, diced up raw fish cured in citrus juices and spiced with aji peppers.
Atún tiraditos cut differently to ceviche flavoured with ginger and chilli salsa. Food that has been cooked on the Josper grill had a lovely smoky flavour from the open charcoal grill. Pollo anticucho marinated skewers cooked so tender.
Two of the dishes from the tasting menu were cooked with Alhambra beer. Beer battered crispy tempura prawn dipped into a chilli sauce.
Costillas de res needed to be prepared a day in advance, and marinated for at least 8 hours. The meat becomes very tender that can be ripped off from the bone. Glazed off with a Japanese style sauce, the meat melts in your mouth with a boozy finish.
There were so many other dishes I tried but will make this post extremely long. Skipping to desserts was worth the long wait as we all tucked into a beautiful exotic fruit platter and coconut mousse, sorbets.
I really enjoyed the meal with Coya and certainly, will go back again for the food. Alhambra beer proves to go well with the bold vibrant flavours from Coya without getting that bloating feeling.
118 Piccadilly, Mayfair, London, W1J 7NW
{google_map}118 Piccadilly, Mayfair, London, W1J 7NW{/google_map}
http://www.coyarestaurant.com/london
http://www.cervezasalhambra.com/