Coppa – review

Sicilian splendour: Whole seabass. Photograph: Lardo

The shock arrival of British summer this year left us hastily scrambling for spots to eat and drink in the sun.

But with beer garden elbow room coming at a premium, Hackney’s barflies have been looking skyward for cool places to sip their Camparis as a glut of rooftop bars and eateries burst into life across the skyline.

Sicilian bar and BBQ joint Coppa, created by the team behind Lardo just around the corner, is one of the freshest kids on the block.

Perched on a roof at the back of London Fields, it boasts candy-striped deck chairs, a bar festooned with brightly coloured cocktails and a chilled hubbub of customers milling around in the sun.

We went on a Sunday, with a glorious mauve and apricot sunset hanging over the sky and plenty of people still packing out the terrace.

The food here is Sicilian and it’s excellent. There are bigger dishes like the steak and some seafood paella to share, but we stuck to the small plates.

We started with two fat slices of warm bruschetta smothered in creamy goat curd, which is like a very young or mild version of goat’s cheese, with fat salty smoked sardines on top. They were brilliant and I missed them when they were gone.

The calamari was hot and crisp, the chicken spiedini, or skewers, were spicy, juicy mouthfuls of joy and the crispy courgette fritters were excellent too.

The deep-fried mini calzone stuffed with aubergine, potato and cheese were, needless to say, wonderful.

We had a nice bottle of Sicilian red for £18 and the cocktails look delicious too. There’s a friendly vibe and the food is pretty reasonable, with good portions from around £3.50 and a robust selection of vegetarian-friendly fare.

It gets busy, so book ahead!

Hothouse Rooftop, access via Martello Street, E8 3QW. 020 8985 2683