Young Turks at The Ten Bells

The Ten Bells pub in Spitalfields is historic for the wrong reasons. In recent decades it was tastelessly renamed The Jack the Ripper, which further cemented its place in history as the pub patronised by many of the serial murderer's victims. One of the five unfortunates - Mary Kelly - used to stand outside The Ten Bells to attract business.

In the last decade, in line with the resurgence of much of Spitalfields, the Ten Bells has become a trendy watering hole. A three-month residency (ending in January) by the 'Young Turks' - originally three chefs who collaborated on sell-out, pop-up dining projects around London - has generated a lot of interest.

The Young Turks now comprise only two chefs, Isaac McHale and James Lowe, and this will be their longest-running stint to date - and perhaps their most ambitious. McHale and Lowe, who cut their teeth at such places as The Ledbury and St John Bread & Wine, aim to completely change their four-course, multi-snack menu of Modern European-slash-British cooking every week. Which means the dishes we describe here may not be on the menu by the time you visit.

If so, we will sorely miss the crisp nuggets of buttermilk-marinated fried chicken dusted with fine pine salt; I suggest a petition to keep it as a staple on the menu. A trout dish, using that terribly in-vogue Nordic technique of hay-smoking, showed real finesse; the fish had the texture of sashimi. This was refreshingly paired with a breadcrumb topping, ribbons of very lightly pickled cucumber and dabs of mustard shot through with salty seaweed.

Pheasant breast, pleasantly juicy, was an excellent match with slightly floral quince purée, earthy swede and a light gravy; this was complemented by an equally juicy, cherryish bottle of Valpolicella at £22 (all the 20-odd bottles are marked up by around £10, with about half available by the glass).

But there are dishes that we won't be sad to see struck off the menu. Raw forerib and oyster - chopped up and served on thin, melba-like dripping toast - needed seasoning and some acid to cut through the metallic tang of raw meat and oyster juices. A dessert of vanilla ice cream came with jerusalem artichoke purée and crisps, and the rosemary-like herb called savory as a garnish: it was a baby-food dessert with little whimsy or excitement.

Bookings are only taken in batches. The current booking run, for December (when the pop-up will be open for lunch as well as dinner), starts on November 14. The small dining room is atmospheric, and service on the floor is commendable. There's a lot of promise in the pair's cooking, if you can get a table.