Eating at this Asian restaurant feels like you’ve left London. That’s partly because of the location: set on a secluded corner of St Katharine Docks Marina, look out of Dokke’s large glass windows and all you can see is water. It’s a seven-minute walk from the tube, but you get that romantic, holiday feeling that you’d never bump into anyone you know. It would be a good place to go if you were, say, having an affair.
The head chef here used to work on private islands – and you can tell. There were vegan options, dishes were complex and everything came sprinkled with tiny edible flowers. Sometimes that worked brilliantly: a plate of tender, beautifully gamey roe deer served with fresh blackberries and asparagus was exquisite. Also unexpectedly delicious were sticky chicken wings dipped in labneh. At points, though, things fell apart. A vegan curry was minuscule – there were more flowers on the plate than actual food – and Dokke’s very salty take on fish fingers made me long for Birds Eye.
But this place is by no means a straightforward case of style over substance. The space itself is refreshingly low key, with a relaxed open kitchen and charmingly haphazard service. And that view is nice. Not quite luxury-private-island nice, but as close as you’re going to get in the Docklands.