The beginning of April saw a number of exciting restaurants blossom – and even in the midst of some loud voices at the table – Sova managed to be heard.
Meaning “owl” in several Slavic languages, Sova is the new Eastern European restaurant/bar to land in Ladbroke Grove, taking over the old ZIMA Notting Hill with a unique concept: a spotlight on low-intervention and skin-contact wines from all across – you may have guessed – Eastern and Central Europe.
It’s a restaurant with a very considered menu, spearheaded by Moldovan chef Denis Calmis. But really, as soon as you enter, you’re greeted by an imposing wine and vinyl bar and a 10-page wine menu, so you should go there for the drinks.
Alongside its curated food and wine offering, the space hosts guest DJs throughout the week, playing from an on-site collection of vinyl records curated in collaboration with Rough Trade.
The vibe check
The space is small, with a long bar taking up most of the entrance and a few tables tucked away at the back. It feels intimate and a bit hidden – more like a neighbourhood bar than a typical Notting Hill spot.
It’s dimly lit, warm, and softly atmospheric, with vinyl and bottles worked into the shelves. As mentioned, you’re really here for the wines, so you’d be well served by grabbing a seat at the bar.
What’s on the wine menu?
The wine list, curated by sommelier Cristian Vega – previously of Wilton’s and Pollini at Ladbroke Hall – moves from pét-nats and a Ukrainian Brut through orange wines and Georgian whites, before landing on chilled reds from Bosnia to Bulgaria, and everything in between.
Expect to embark on a journey across Central and Eastern Europe—truly. This isn’t the odd Bulgarian bottle lost in a sea of Spanish Rioja and Italian Chianti. The 10-page menu is crammed with wines from Slovenia, Ukraine, Serbia and Croatia – the kind of regions you wouldn’t always associate with standout bottles, now confidently reclaiming their front row seats.
If you’re on a date and planning to flex your wine knowledge, maybe save it for another night. We’d strongly recommend leaving it to the experts to guide you – exactly what we did, and it paid off.
We tried a Ukrainian sparkling, an orange wine from Slovenia, and eventually landed on a Melnik Prime from Bulgaria, as advised by the sommelier. If, like us, you enjoy a deep, rich red, you’ll love this one.
And what about the food?
The food menu consists of unfussy sharing plates with a Slavic edge. Think beef tartare on Borodinsky bread with horseradish mayo, whisky and honey-roasted baby chicken, and miso-glazed duck confit with Jerusalem artichokes and plum sauce. Here’s what we ordered:
Starters
Bread comes from the Notting Hill Bakery around the corner, paired with an obscene amount of seaweed butter – which, in a historic first, we didn’t finish. We also ordered the cheese platter, lured in by the ‘Balkan & Alpine’ tag – a greatest hits playlist of the region, if you will. We couldn’t tell you which cheese was which, but we can tell you every single one was a banger.
Mains
Regrettably, we didn’t get to try the beetroot croquettes – they had already sold out by the time we ordered – so we swiftly moved on to the mains. Red wine is a shoo-in for comforting dishes. And what screams comfort more than a pearl barley risotto?
Now, when a menu says “with goat’s cheese,” you picture a few scattered crumbles. Certainly not a gleaming full moon of goat’s cheese perched on top of your risotto. It was such a hefty portion that we inadvertently fell into a brief silence, wondering what we’d done to deserve it. A truly glorious dish.
seaweed butter (£6)
Desserts
Sweet tooth or not, you cannot end a dinner without the grand finale – that’s our deal breaker.
The dark chocolate mousse is a hard-hitter. Silky but dense, almost like butter, with a sun-kissed, piquant sea buckthorn emulsion that you’ll want to scrape clean with your spoon. Have them together – it’s a true feast for the palate (if you’re not afraid of the dark!). Each spoonful of this majestic dollop will punch you in the face unapologetically, and you’ll be glad it did.
The blueberry cake looks like something you’d order at Gail’s on a Sunday stroll. Delicious – don’t get us wrong – just the complete antithesis of the mousse. Light sponge, beautiful smooth cream, and very fruit-forward. It’s a matter of preference here.
Verdict
There’s a time and a place for every restaurant, and Sova nailed both. It serves a unique concept – and does so with poise and refinement. Sometimes the magic is in scaling down, and Sova’s pared-back food menu is proof of that. As for the wine list – a labyrinth for the curious and the curiouser – you’re in wine wonderland here, so enjoy getting lost.
Key details
Address: Notting Hill – 9 Blenheim Cres, London W11 2EE
Website: sova.london
Socials: @sova.london
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