Brilliant Corners

Happened to stumble across this place a while ago and just went in for a couple of cocktails, but the food looked so good we made a point of going back for dinner. Finally got round to it the other night and definitely didn’t disappoint!
One of the best things about Brilliant Corners is the atmosphere which is lovely and chilled. The DJ’s play some great funky mixes which gets a few tables up dancing when the lights get dimmed and the glitter ball comes out! Staff are friendly and attentive and the food really is delicious and reasonably priced. The chicken and prawn tempura are some of the best I’ve had! Paid quite a bit more for drinks than what we ate but I’d still say it’s good value for what you get. Great for a date or night with friends, I’m definitely going back.

I have ate at Brilliant corners on numerous occasions because I have never had a bad meal there. The menu is concise and offers many veggies options. If, like me, you eat meat then the Karaage chicken is worth an order, TWICE.
The mood is relaxed, nobody is paying attention to anybody outside of their party. It’s a pleasant hassle-​free atmosphere where you will find a DJ playing soulful obscure beats. It is dimly lit and casual. The staff are attentive but are happy to just let you enjoy your food and drinks without trying to rush you out the door.
My only criticism is the cocktails; the price and the size. They’re tasty and I’d like to drink more without doubling the price of my food bill.

I’ve been back to Brilliant Corners a few times since my first cheeky review and the place just goes from strength to strength. The Karaage chicken is the best fried chicken in London, hands down. It’s absolutely delicious and just £5 a portion. The sashimi beef is equally incredible and you get a lovely gingery slate full for £9. Both highly recommended. And the wine. Oh my word. It’s so well selected, so perfectly served and so delicious. Red, white, prosecco and skin contact wines (kind of orangy) are a treat to try and I’m happy to pay £7 a glass for them. I once had a glass of cold cold white wine in there that was so good I fantasise about it on a pretty regular basis. The staff are great, the music delightfully nerdy and pretentious. Bit of an older Dalston crowd but that’s Ok. It’s a bit of a connoisseurs kind of place.

Music aficionados of London, unite! Your kingdom has come. You know how sometimes you can tell that an establishment is the culmination of someone thinking hard and dreaming big? Well, THIS.
Make a special visit to this Kingsland off-​Road jewel, and be prepared to tune in and drop out – or Shazam every rare groove track that the genius DJ drops in. I went for Phil Mison’s «Just Landed» evening, and my friends and I enjoyed how eclectic the crowd was in just about every demographic attribute – certainly not the «same-​y» 20-​something Dalston set dominating the rest of Kingsland.
Although it seemed like everyone else was in on a party we were crashing, the vibe was super accepting and perfectly warm. My friends and I were equally fine standing in a corner as creating a mild ruckus at the bar as sinking deep into a couch and watching the Brilliant Corners microcosm dance on by.
As for the mild bar ruckus: Brilliant Corners offers a small but neatly curated selection of wines and bottled craft beers. The person serving us somehow got our order confused several times in one transaction, to the point of it being farcically bizarre: «Witt» became «red» became wine became wrong beer became wrong beer became right beer. At one point, we thought maybe he was just an overly enthused reveler who made it behind the bar and wanted to help out. Ultimately, this mildly inept and likely inebriated man was having such a great time in the midst of it that we couldn’t get upset – the vibe was too good to kill.
At the end of the night, the sustainable Japanese cuisine kitchen came out with a bunch of free bites – every tidbit we snagged was delicious.
This could easily be a five star establishment for me – I just need to make a second visit to confirm the audio awesomeness, hope that none of the staffers go rogue, and order a full meal. I’ll be ready to Shazam.