The Village

Located in a vast Hammersmith basement, the Village is a relaxed space where, on our visit, the informality was underscored by most customers appearing to be Somali friends of the employees. Service was quite slow, despite few people dining, and although our waiter was geniality itself, this didn't compensate for him mixing up our orders (they were eventually corrected).

From the all-halal menu we enjoyed a perfectly cooked sea bass, subtly seasoned and accompanied by salad dressed with lemon and olive oil. The drawback was the soggy Somali bread (wholemeal bread soaked in a coriander sauce). Likewise, tiramisu sponge for pudding was scrumptious, but spoiled by an abundance of very sweet cream on top.

The decor keeps things simple, with tables and chairs of dark wood and the odd piece of traditional Somali striped cloth or panels of patterned bamboo on the walls. Somali folk music plays in the background. To drink, try something from the tempting range of fruit shakes (no alcohol is served), such as avocado, banana and mango.