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<strong>Rating: </strong>3/5
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Time Out says
Fri Oct 5 2012
In July 2012 Milk Bar changed hands and is now run by Tracey Petersen of Giaconda Dining Room. There has been a change of staff and tinkering with the menu; but just as before, this place is serious about coffee, like its progenitor Flat White.
Surroundings are spartan: on our visit, the white-washed walls were decorated with an exhibition of dramatic photographic prints, while a pair of ceiling fans idly pushed the air around. A splash of colour came courtesy of the blood red counter, while scuffed school chairs and a soundtrack of hip-hop beats brought a modish old-school edge.
The small savoury list shows potential, with a handful of interesting open sandwiches and salads. Our dish of whole radiccio leaves with a plump burrata was a nice idea (and came served with a dinky jug of fragrant virgin olive oil), but the fat ball of cheese, though creamy, was no match for the extreme bitterness of this crimson cousin to chicory: another full-flavoured ingredient (toasted nuts, a fatty meat, or ripe tomatoes, say), would have better balanced the plate. In contrast, the own-made cakes are excellent. Our carrot cake was light, moist and nutty, while a rich slice of baked cheesecake was beautifully offset by a light sprinkling of ground cinnamon.
As for Milk Bar's raison d'être, the espresso (from a bespoke Square Mile blend) that emerged from the La Marzocco machine was exceptionally bracing, high-roast profile with minimal fruit and body. You would have to be very brave to drink it without sugar. But that's beside the point, because it's really designed, we suspect, for the milky drinks that are the house speciality.
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