I first tried to go to Moya with the now-boyfriend over 3 years ago. The evening did not start well: a sudden thunderstorm soaked my jeans to the knee, I was running late, and then Moya was closed. The entrails were not auspicious.
Somehow, we had a wonderful evening. And we've been meaning to give Moya another chance ever since. We made it as far as cocktails once, but already had dinner reservations at Door 74, not wanting to take a risk on it being closed again. So, three years later, we headed back.
Moya have an extensive cocktail menu - normally the sort of thing that would make me wary but, with around half the floor space occupied by a bar, we decided they might be serious and ordered a couple. His Sloe Gin Sling was pleasantly bitter, refreshing, and almost savoury in a herby fashion. My Honeysuckle Champagne veered just the right side of sweet, and also had a lovely floral scent. The wine list is short but also excellent: we went for a very reasonably priced bottle of Malbec.
As a starter, I simply had to try the fantastically-named Devil's Toast. Knowing I would choose a meaty main course, though, I went for the vegetarian version. I certainly didn't find it as scary as it threatened to be; there was a pleasant dry warmth from the paprika but it didn't get near blowing my head off. In any case, the heat was tempered by the generous helping of creamy goat's cheese, grilled over the top. He went for the fishcake, perhaps a little short on fish but very light and fluffy. With finely chopped mixed vegetables in the mix, it was a fresh-tasting start to a meal.
I tried two things I've never heard of before for my main course (quite an achievement on the part of a restaurant!). The Segedin pork stew was surprisingly light and delicate - perhaps too delicate, as I struggled to detect any of the promised caraway in the sauce. It was served with knedla, a steamed bread. This was easily the fluffiest bread I've ever had, almost too light to be capable of mopping up the juices from my plate, but utterly delicious nonetheless. On the other side of the table, he had Smoked Sausage, possibly the most disappointing dish of the evening. The portion size was definitely on the small side (two sausages), and the promised bacon/garlic/shallots were a tiny dash of seasoning, not the major feature that their inclusion on the menu might suggest. Note to chefs everywhere: you do not need to list every single ingredient of every dish on the menu. However, this came with a side dish of some good gratin potatoes, so it wasn't a total loss.
I could tell that the main dish must have been a bit small, because he managed dessert. And a good thing too, as it was raved about: a Bublanina sponge cake, incredibly airy and fluffy, doused with assorted forest berries on top, and served with a you-know-that's-homemade-real-stuff light vanilla custard.
Service throughout was very professional, hitting just the right note between friendly and overbearing. Overall, it was an enjoyable meal, but perhaps not quite enjoyable enough for me to rave about for weeks. The flavours, the portion size, the service: everything felt as if it was slightly held in, aiming to be a tamed version of Slovak cuisine, palatable for English unused to spice and fat. I left wanting more, despite being full.
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