Team Coco checks out Alpes London, the Raclette Brother’s new semi-permanent opening in Pop Brixton; bringing all the wonderfully cheesy flavours of the Alpes right into the heart of South London. So if you’re a raclette lover looking for an unpretentious après-ski (in London), then Alpes London will definitely be your new favourite pop-up.
We make our way to Pop Brixton on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The place is buzzing despite the usual lazy vibe signalling the dreaded end of the weekend. For those who haven’t had the chance to visit the South London location, Pop Brixton is a melting pot of different restaurants and bars, all built conveniently into container vans. Alpes London is located in prime real estate right above the entrance, where guests can view all the happenings down below. With options for both indoor and outdoor dining, Alpes offers is a casual alternative to Street-food dining, without all the faff of being in a fancy restaurant – i.e. no sitting on steps or leaning on tiny cocktail tables.
We are greeted right away by the extremely charming Jaime, 1/2 of the Raclette brothers, and front-of-house for Alpes London. As we start off the evening with a bottle of their delicious “Space Cat” wine while Steve, the other half of the Raclette Brother’s, whips up some truly delectable dishes from their Swiss inspired menu. Alpes London champions using only the best producers in Europe; after all the brother’s do come from a long line of producers as well. We start off with some deep fried olives stuffed with goat’s cheese, followed by their vegan offering, the wild garlic asparagus drizzled with hazelnut pesto, and then the melt-in-your-mouth beef cheek pancetta. The piece de resistance however, is definitely the Raclette Jurasienne. A giant wheel of Raclette cheese, melted to perfection and then scraped directly onto a plate of roast Queen Anne potatoes, pickles, and crispy pancetta. Absolutely mouth-watering.
All this and more puts Alpes London on top of London’s culinary pops ups, proving that Raclette is just as good in the summer as it is in the winter slopes. If not for anything else, do pop in and have a chat with the Raclette brothers themselves. Beyond proving their literal hands-on approach to food, with Jaime working front-of-house, and Steve in the kitchen — the brothers are always up for a good laugh over some beers and some truly delicious raclette.
Alpes London is in Pop Brixton, 49 Brixton Road, and open from Wednesday-Sundays until 11pm