Grain Store - Loubet does casual fusion in Kings Cross

Last year I lived in a lovely Georgian building between two great London restaurants - Bistrot Bruno Loubet and The Modern Pantry. I loved them both and often spent hours and hard earned cash swooning over their food. While very different in style, provenance and flavours, both restaurants served up the kind of food you want to eat - exciting, refreshing, comforting and delicious.

And now, I wonder if their close proximity facilitated some sort of molecular exchange, a fusion of foodie DNA. Or, did Bruno Loubet stand at the large windows of his restaurant gazing across the square at The Modern Pantry and, somehow, subliminal messages about fusion cooking and exotic ingredients wafted on the breeze into his subconscious? Whatever may have happened, there is no denying that Loubet's new enterprise, Grain Store, has similarities to the cooking of Anna Hansen at The Modern Pantry. And, from the vantage point of my Clerkenwell home, my theory seems feasible. Of course, Loubet has spent time working wonders down under. And Grain Store is yet another collaboration with the founders of Moro, whose commitment to North African flavours may have rubbed off. Whatever the reason, Grain Store is one of the most interesting restaurants to have opened lately, among a huge list of hasbeens and wannabes that have made up a large portion of this year's many openings.

Grain Store has two USPs; the humble vegetable will play a starring role, with meat as the co-star. And that there is still much more innovation and creative development left in the world of cocktail making. Tony Conigliaro is in charge of drinks, continuing this successful collaboration from my other neighbour that nearly caused my financial ruin - the Zetter Townhouse. The cocktails and other libations at Grain Store are rather special, even by today's standards where it has become commonplace for bars to make their own bitters and cocktails come aged in oak casks. The Granary Martini is an astonishing distillation of mustard seeds in vodka mixed with dry vermouth (presumably house-made) which would make the ideal accompaniment to roast beef. Other savoury cocktails include Cedar Wood Lemonade combining Fino sherry aged in cedar with lemon juice - refreshing, long and satisfyingly woody - and Pumpkin & Maple Syrup Bellini made with home-made pumpkin puree and 'de-sugared' maple syrup. 

And then there are the Greco/Roman wines. Smoked or infused with herbs, this picks up an ancient practise of flavouring wine - not unlike mulled wine but more subtle and served at room temperature. Even the non-alcoholic drinks on the menu have been given a molecular twist, such as Hay & Grass Water or even Silver Water which combines silver tip tea with cassis and water. 

After drinks on the sunny terrace overlooking the transformed Kings Cross goods yards, we moved to a table inside to eat. It is an interesting space, with tall, uncovered ceilings and shards of sunlight cutting across the open-plan kitchen. There are tables of different heights to break up the sound and kitchen annexes posted around the dining room - the pastry counter was next to the bar, looking more like a DJ's de-constructed decks. It is informal by Loubet's standards; again it has an antipodean insouciance which contrasts starkly with the starchy white of Loubet's bistrot down the road.

To start I had the Potato & Rye Bread, Seaweed Butter, Oyster and Borage leaves. The seaweed butter was a salty, umami treat but overpowered the oyster leaves, drowning out their subtle oystery flavour.

Chilled clear Lobster 'Bloody Mary' was a salad of plump lobster and heritage tomatoes over which was poured a reduction of vodka infused tomato liquor - very, very good but very small, although there was a generous amount of lobster.

The mains may challenge hardened carnivores. Chilli con Veggies with Brown Rice sounded a bit too like my mother's attempts at healthy food back in the '80s, while Vegetable Paella, Garlic & Tomato Snails seemed almost pointless, although I don't know this as I was not tempted to try it. I did, however, try the Buttermilk & Caraway Braised Cauliflower, Wood Baked Onions, Devilled Duck Heart - the meat components of any dish always appear at the end. This was really a dish of two parts; the duck hearts devilled and coated in a wine-based jus while the cauliflower nestled in its own pot in a thin, yoghurty sauce with too much caraway for my liking. I couldn't help wishing the duck hearts had come atop a creamy mound of mash instead.

The mash was present in Spiced Mash, Mint Pickled Cucumber, Raw Pinktop Turnips, Broad Beans, Confit Lamb Belly. Here again, the spicing of the mash fought against the soft, meaty flavour of the lamb and won. The lamb belly was beautifully cooked and tasted lovely once I had scraped off the mash. The crisp turnips and young broad beans were more successfully paired with the mashed potato and so I enjoyed them separately.

Reading this now, my review does not sound all that complimentary, but that is not the intention. I would definitely go back to Grain Store and try more of the dishes on offer. There is more to this restaurant than one visit can unveil and I am pretty sure it is worth the perseverance. And, as prices are surprisingly keen for cooking of this standard, an impromptu pit-stop when next in the area (may need to plan ahead at weekends) is definitely on the cards.

Starters from £3 to £6 although the Lobster Bloody Mary is £10
Mains from £10 to £14

Grain Store: Granary Square, 1-3 Stable Street, King's Cross, N1C 4AB
http://www.grainstore.com