Hot Box Spitalfields does what it says on the tin. Serves a medley of dishes with a spicy twist, and given my palate, seemed perfect. Was it any good? Time to find out…
Ideal for:
Brunch American Style
Catching up with mates
Spicing up your life with hot dishes
Ambience & Décor
Like with most trendy places in London these days, the rustic vibe is the “in” thing. Dim lighting, plethora of cheap, shabby, wooden fixtures and fittings and a glaring neon sign. It is the blueprint nowadays, and one Hot Box has followed with little approval from me. It came off as dingy. The hard and unyielding communal benches facilitate quick turnaround, but it was cramped, and that is a massive bugbear of mine. So far, not great, but the atmosphere was palatable.
Service
Service was okay without being amazing. They had a strict timing policy so the staff always check in, more out of necessity, than kindness.
Food
Ordered a selection of starters and a main. The best starters I felt were the Crab Slider (bottom left) and the Asian Wings. The soft shell crab with kimchi slaw, was a great combination. The crab was well fried without being too oily or overpowering, and there was decent heat coming from the slaw. Balanced dish.
The wings had a dark glaze,sesame seeds and pickled red chilli. The sweet, sticky and viscous coating was complemented well by the earthy, chilli and sour notes from the picked chillies with the chicken remaining moist throughout. For the price, the portion was decent. I did want this to pack more heat however.
The Beef Short Rib and Mutton Taco were decent without actually blowing me away. This was a shame as the ingredients list for both make most diners salivate. Classic case of when throwing so much yielded so little. Despite the glaring flavour pairing problems, the meats were cooked well.
The biggest disappointment of the night was the Smoked Meat Hash (right). Thankfully it was not expensive! The chorizo and beef were lathered with hot sauce and lurking was the chimichurri. The latter may have caused the dish to drown in oil. Automatic turn off. The chorizo was cooked well, but the beef was overdone and tasted cheap. The potatoes also lacked seasoning. The crime committed was the lack of punch, which is bizarre given the ingredient list and name of venue. Safe to say I did not finish this.
Hot Box Spitalfields’s trendy location should pull in the punters, and its well-crafted menu should excite, but the execution of all of it was lacking. I want more heat and enjoyment, and I think it needed to re-visit its interior design. Even the crab I enjoyed, was overpriced. This was an Average Joe place that will sadly be remembered more for its misses than hits, so it’s a C- rating.
Photos of Hot Box and more can be found on Instagram here.
Final grade: C-
Final comment: On paper, Hot Box should amaze, but in reality, its amiss. Big Shame!
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