Ceru

Fresh and clean, fun and colourful, and undoubtedly Eastern Mediterranean – when it comes to this cute little Levantine diner nestled just off Old Brompton Road, those adjectives could either be describing the food, the decor or the staff. A bustling open kitchen is the first thing you see when you go in, but the eye quickly shifts to the brightly coloured walls, clashing with dizzily patterned furniture.

The clientele seems to be a mix of tourists and locals, but all are given the same merry reception, as if they’ve just come back for the third night running. Ceru promises the best of an area covering Turkey to Syria to Israel (and everything in between).

Of our dips and green bits, the crisp apple, mint and pomegranate salad outshone the pancar beetroot offering by a country mile, but there were plenty of other intriguing numbers that will guarantee our return. Shish taouk, chicken tikka by another name, was perfectly cooked and plenty for two. Persian kaftas (beef patties) came slighly dry but were lifted by a tarator (tahini and lemon) sauce. Elsewhere, the zucchini and feta fritters were too stodgy to finish but a failsafe go-to of halloumi with harissa and grilled peppers more than saved the day. If you somehow have shares in pomegranates, rejoice! They have a way of studding, sprinkling or topping most things with them, but not to the point of overdosing. And be warned, the thanks and goodbyes were even more enthusiastic than the welcome. But you can’t really have too much of a good thing like that.