Be a good neighbour and visit Good Neighbour

… And ok, maybe this Good Neighbour won’t be taking your parcels any time soon but they tick everything else on that list and then some. Good Neighbour is a dinky wine-focused bar on Tooting High Street (they’ve got branches in Camberwell and Peckham too) that serves seasonal small plates, classic cocktails, wine and a gorgeous atmosphere too. It’s a friendly, understated place that lends itself terrifically to intimate moments with loved ones. When you are next looking for a romantic setting or somewhere to romanticise, this is your place.

We went down to try out this little gem. Starting off with cocktails we went for a Good Neighbour G&T which had a lovely fragrant twist with the addition of rosemary and aperitivo and the aptly named Punch with a Kick, a pineapple and rum base and a glass that came with a chilli and Szechuan coated rim… it certainly had a kick! A really fun, tingly drink to get you in the mood for the rest of the evening. We won’t school you on our wine choices – that is such a personal preference- but if you are stuck ask the friendly, knowledgeable staff and they’ll help lead you through their lovely selection depending on your tastes and what food you are ordering.

Though we were expecting big things from their drinks list, we weren’t prepared for how good the food was going to be here too. A couple of mouthfuls in and we quickly realised this was going to be one of the best meals we’ve had in London. The menu is packed full of all the buzzy dishes sweeping London right now- king oyster mushroom tostada, beef shin tortelloni, fried feta and honey… but luckily because they are small plates you’re allowed to go all out and they recommend getting 2-3 dishes per person. We took that with a pinch of salt and ordered 7 between two and had no regrets, each plate was wiped clean. The menu is handily broken up into snacks, vegetarian, ‘the sea’, meat and desserts so it’s easy to work out a good range of dishes. We got the hot artichoke and parmesan dip (which came with squidgy sourdough to mop it up with), prawn croquettes topped with a flavour bomb of black garlic aioli, a quartet of caramelised celeriac arancini truffle, a very fashionable Burrata that came with plums and pickled walnuts and some crostini to scoop healthily sized blobs onto, some zingy fried cod cheeks, some braised beef tostadas that redefined the word ‘unctuous’ and finally the crunchy Korean fried chicken. What a selection! Though the menu won’t let you go too far wrong, it was the artichoke and parmesan dip that really won the best dish for us- warm, delicious, creamy. Just really damn great.

Good Neighbour is exactly what the name suggests- the kind of place that you want to have in the neighbourhood. It’s cosy and welcoming, the staff were great and the food and drink were top tier too. The advantage of it being such an intimate spot means that there are fewer tables vying for the attention of the staff so you get served really quickly and with ultimate professionalism. Good Neighbour, you’ll be seeing us again.