Please note, Rawduck has now closed. Time Out Food editors, April 2019.
You’d be forgiven for thinking this is a hunting-lodge themed duck restaurant, but it’s not. Instead, it's the second venture from the people behind Ducksoup in Soho, who've decided to head upstream to Hackney.
Echoing the venue’s name, the look here is raw, though it’s no ugly duckling. The thin strip of a space is flanked on one side by a poured concrete counter, and on the other by matching concrete tables meant for sharing. Friendly staff and old vinyl spinning at the back give the place a comfortably casual feel.
As with Ducksoup, the emphasis here is on quality ingredients, assembled simply. By day, Rawduck has a trendy café vibe with buttery breakfast buns from nearby Violet Cakes, sandwiches on E5 Bakehouse breads, and coffee from Caravan.
By night it transforms it into a wine bar with natural and biodynamic wines, mostly French and Italian. If you’re not a natural wine buff, then it may be worth trying a few before you choose – these too can have a ‘raw’ quality not to everyone’s taste. Don't be put off by the prices on the board, the bottles hanging in front of it are generally cheaper, as are the carafes.
A scoop of soft rillettes speckled with black pepper made a pleasing accompaniment to a punchy Apulian red. Our spatchcocked quail looked like it had got in the way of a cartoon steamroller (or sandwich press perhaps), but the meat was still surprisingly tender.
As much of a morning café as a post-work wine bar, Rawduck’s proximity to Hackney Central station should make it a popular stop-off.