Cassette

What it is

Cassette is a modern French bistrot from Mark Gurney and Matt Bushnell, who run Levan in Peckham, with Essa Fakhry as head chef. It sits in a lofty former workshop on Maiden Lane with double-height ceilings and an aluminium island bar: 46 seats upstairs, ten more at a semi-open kitchen below and 24 outside. The cooking is classical with a light touch: raw beef croustade with comté (£4 each), pickled mussels with panisse and aïoli, fromage de tête with tarragon and mustard (£16), a hen of the woods and armagnac vol-au-vent with sauce Parisienne (£27), grilled mackerel with lobster bisque and coco beans (£29) and pigeon chou farci (£34). Lunch and dinner run seven days, and the set lunch and pre-theatre menu is £27 for two courses or £31 for three, Monday to Saturday.