london

Som Saa

• Thai• Spitalfields

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About the restaurant

Chef Andy Oliver founded Som Saa as a residency in coffee roaster Climpson & Sons’ Hackney location, which has played host to pop-ups from some of London’s best chefs in the last decade. Oliver was joined by co-founders Mark Dobbie and Tom George to open Som Saa’s permanent location on Commercial Street, near Spitalfields.

Som Saa’s dining room is dark but roomy, with the music turned up loud and a party atmosphere in the evenings. Small, high tables and compact booths complement a few choice bar counter seats, which are always popular.

Flavours here are big, and spicy, inspired by Oliver and Dobbie’s time spent at the restaurant Nahm in Bangkok, and their travels throughout the region. A whole fried sea bass, spiced with fragrant lemongrass, chilli and fish sauce, has been a hugely popular choice since the restaurant’s opening, as well as hot and sour curries foregrounding British meat and seasonal vegetables.

Reviews from the Web

Critic reviews

The Infatuation

The food here is northern Thai influenced, meaning it’s influenced by street foods from the north of Thailand, which means, basically, it doesn’t mess about. Dishes like the tamarind grilled chicken or whole fried sea bass are full of flavour without being mega-spicy, but a lot of the dishes here thrive on spice.

Time Out

Take the deep-fried seabass with Isaan (north-eastern) herbs. Don’t let the fact that it’s served whole put you off. The sides come loose easily, leaving a cartoon fish skeleton that you can discard or take home to sew into an annoying housemate’s curtains.

The Guardian

A pop-up Thai has parlayed itself into a full-blown restaurant. It’s popular, noisy and the food has quite a kick

The Nudge

The space looks pretty spectacular, with rustic wood, industrial cast iron, and bare brick all neatly commingling.