Review: Cubes restaurant Crouch End is reliably excellent

This relatively new brasserie and lounge bar, which boasts the luxury of a covered outdoor terrace, has been designed with its Mediterranean-inspired menu in mind.

Rustic exposed brick walls, a floor-to-ceiling front window – which is fully opened on hot summer days – and quality wood tables lure you into instant relaxation.

Inside Cubes restaurant in Crouch End (Image: Chantelle Billson)

The open kitchen pumps out an appetising scent of home cooking onto the Crouch End Broadway, which initially enticed me in months ago to try the brunch menu. I have returned weekly ever since.

At the time of my visit, at the end of June, Cubes was the best-rated restaurant in the area on Google. If that doesn’t say enough, the food is sure to. Deciding to be adventurous, I held back my desire to have brunch in the outdoor terrace and waited until 7pm for dinner.

The restaurant’s staff, all of whom get to know the diners personally, tend to customers in a charming manner. The menu descriptions list indulgent dishes that conjure an image of enjoyment reflected by the calming ambience in the restaurant.

Feta salad and goats cheese salad. All dishes are served with warm bread (Image: Chantelle Billson)

Although the chefs execute dishes well, the menu is unfussy and caters for vegetarians, vegans and those who enjoy animal produce. Co-owner Remzi Alpkan proudly tends to our table with fruit-infused water and olives.

He states “it’s all good and home cooking”, with his recommendation to try the langoustines being a welcome one. It’s a tight operation, with Remzi attentively serving tables, while darting back-and-forth to the three chefs who are consistently plating up delectable-looking dishes.

Spicy lamb kafta and langoustines (Image: Chantelle Billson)

The langoustines were served in a rich tomato, white wine and garlic sauce, with every mouthful being as moreish as the last. Our table is then full of starters. Just a few of the highlights were the feta salad with succulent watermelon, warm goats cheese served with walnuts, balsamic sauce and salad and prawn croquettes with a tangy sweet chilli sauce.

My eyes catch a glance of the main courses of fellow diners. Impressive plates full of Mediterranean goodness: pan-fried sea bass with the restaurant’s own recipe of pearl barley, mushrooms, asparagus and a creamy sauce being one dish I will return to try.

The 12oz Ribeye steak with pan-fried mushrooms, chips, broccoli and peppercorn sauce (Image: Chantelle Billson)

We opted for a classic 12oz ribeye steak served with pan-fried mushrooms, chips, broccoli and peppercorn sauce. A dish I never opt for if I doubt the quality of the ingredients of a place, but here it’s better than expected. Tender and cooked to perfection: medium rare.

Serving breakfast until 4pm, lunch and dinner, Cubes is worth a try when it comes to choosing where to go in Crouch End. It provides a home-from-home feel – with much nicer food – welcoming staff and is a place that will make you feel better about the day.

Cubes is at 10, Broadway Parade, N8 9DE.