London & South East Premier Hospitality

Aloha…Hawaiian dream debuts in Dalston

Pond Dalston, London
Written by Roma Publications

Pond Dalston, London

Offering a deliciously different gastronomic adventure in the form of New Hawaiian cuisine, Pond Dalston Restaurant has just made its debut in a former Victorian warehouse in the centre of Dalston.

Pond Dalston showcases the very best of New Hawaiian Cuisine, a style which draws on Hawaii’s central Pacific location, fusing the food of nearby countries with local traditions and ingredients.

Byron Knight, owner of Pond Dalston describes it as “The fine dining blend of traditional Hawaiian food, the best European cooking techniques and dishes from Hawaii’s main immigrant communities – Chinese, Japanese and Filipino.”

“I spent a lot of time producing Hawaiian food in California, as well as two years or so in Hawaii – it’s primarily about a different way of treating ingredients,” he told Premier Construction.

He continues, “Everything we do at Pond Dalston is based on the Hawaiian word Aloha – which means hello, goodbye, love for your brother, sister, partner and community – and love for your planet. As such, our menu will remain as local as possible, ever changing with the seasons, presenting the best of land, sea and soil that this country has to offer.

Pond Dalston, London

“Cooking in Hawaii has developed, matured and blossomed over the last few years to create this new exciting style of food. Drawing on the food that immigrants from around the Pacific brought to Hawaii, chefs combined these flavours with their own local styles and ingredients to make something unique. New Hawaiian Cuisine is more than just a combination of flavours; it is about respecting the source, the ingredients, the preparation, and the love of eating together.”

The restaurant was created through the refurbishment and conversion of the ground floor of a Victorian former warehouse, starting with a bare shell internally and creating a large dining room, a lounge gallery and bar area, and a kitchen.

The scheme was project managed by Byron Knight who engaged all the sub contractors, and was designed by Alexander Mulligan of Alexander Mulligan.com.

The works included the installation of complete new plumbing, raising the floor level, and installing new partitioning, electrical services including lighting and heating, and a complete new catering kitchen including smokers and chargrills.

Pond Dalston, London

“I didn’t want to go for a kitsch ‘Tiki’ type Hawaiian style. We are located within a very artistic, fashionable and creative hub of London and I wanted the decor to reflect this as well as keeping true to the Victorian elements of the building, interpreting this in a bold and interesting design statement,” said Byron.

“So my brief to the interior designer Alexander Mulligan was to base the design on the theme of volcanoes which are so integral to the Hawaiian landscape. This has resulted in a colour scheme featuring lots of warm earth tones including dining booths shaped and coloured to represent volcanoes, and featuring red padded interiors. We actually burnt the tables and chairs so that they were all charred black, before applying a coat of shellac to reflect the volcano theme.”

In line with the Aloha philosophy, Knight and his head chef Frog Wong have designed a menu laden with dishes unique to New Hawaiian Cuisine, such as whole catfish with citrus ponzu, Maui charcoal avocado with macadamia salted coconut crème and Kalua pork with pickleback slaw.

Pond Dalston, London

Currently the most popular dish is the catfish and the smoked beef rib in a grape tonkatsu glaze, with garlic sweet potato mash and parsnip crisps.

Elegant cocktails created by Megs DeMeulenare challenge perceptions of clichéd Tiki drinks, with a list featuring brand new bold interpretations of tropical flavours and seasonal twists on well-loved classics.

About the author

Roma Publications