It's all happening on the South Bank at the moment. There's the Electrolux cube, where top chefs are cooking a meal with a view, Pitt Cue co has made a triumphant return and the Lebanese restaurant Yalla Yalla has opened a summer pop-up on the South Bank Beach. Now Thomasina Myers' Mexican restaurant Wahaca is joining them for a special summer long pop-up as part of the South Bank's Festival of the World.
The new pop up has been designed to make the most of Wahaca's sustainability drive, and is made from eight recycled shipping containers. These have been combined to make a unique two storey restaurant on the terrace of the Queen Elizabeth Hall. There will be a bar, terrace and plenty of outdoor seating giving some excellent views of London.
In line with the nature of the building - the food will have more of an experimental vibe than traditional Wahaca restaurants. So there will be guest chefs coming in throughout the summer and many of the dishes on the menu will be brand new - with a view to introducing the most popular to the all the other Wahacas.
The Wahaca team have just come back from LA on a research trip and their first list of specials is based on the fruits of that trip. So you can expect chilli tacos (featuring a three chillis sautéed with sweet onions, topped with feta and finished with habanero salsa) and quesadillas (sautéed jalapeno, habanero and red bullet chillies with mozzarella and feta) or Salmon ceviche salad (raw Loch Duart salmon, fresh lime and green chilli in a sesame soy dressing) - all vying for a place on Wahaca's street food section.
Also only available at the South Bank are the slow cooked carnitas - confit of pork, cooked for hours and then caramelised on the grill and served as tacos (two large soft corn tortillas, filled with carnitas, tomatillo salsa, lettuce, frijoles and a squeeze of fresh lime) or as a sharing board.
The menu also sees Wahaca joining up with Bermondsey's Ice Cream Union, so if you fancy a tub of salted caramel, strawberries & cream or mango sorbet while strolling down the South Bank, this is the place to come.
Wahaca South Bank opens on July 4 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.
