Following a run of celebrated pub residencies across Hackney and Tottenham, including at Bambi, The Gun and The Bluecoats, chef Jenny Phung and her partner and sous-chef, James “Shep” Shepard, have brought their homestyle Cantonese-inspired cooking to a new setting: Godet, a wine bar on Essex Road in Islington from Sylvain Bertozzi, the French-born sommelier behind tiny Hackney bottle shop Binch.
The collaboration came about by chance. “It was pure luck. Right place, right time,” Phung tells Broadsheet. “I’d had a bad day and texted Freya [Coote, Godet’s PR] asking if she’d heard of anything going. Two days later, she got the job at Godet and suggested me.”
With Godet, Bertozzi has turned a former pub into a French-leaning wine bar. The interior is inviting, with peachy-pink walls, wooden booths, brass details and sage green touches. Candlelight glows against black-and-white check curtains, and large windows flood the room with daylight before it shifts into a moody ambience at night. Set on lively Essex Road, Godet joins a growing cluster of neighbouring natural wine bars like Goodbye Horses, The Dreamery and Hector’s, putting this tree-lined corner of Islington firmly on the map for oenophiles.
Phung says being back near Hackney feels like coming full circle. “I loved Bluecoats in Tottenham, but it was a bit far out,” she says of her last residency. “It’s so nice to be back in this area and have friends pop by again. The community was something I really missed.”
Ling Ling’s first made a name for itself at the now-shuttered Gun on Well Street, where Phung’s Sunday roasts gained a huge following. “They needed someone to cook a roast, and that’s where it all began,” she says. “I love making the roasts, but there are so many components that it’s hard on your body when cooking. I wanted a better work-life balance, and Godet feels more in tune with what we want. It’s a wine bar where you can take your time, listen to music and enjoy good food.”
Phung is serving what she calls her most Chinese menu yet. “I want to bring more of a homely Cantonese feel,” she says. “I never call myself a chef. I’m more of a mum cook who just wants to feed people what I eat at home. Maybe I’m just getting old.”
Expect dishes like soy pomegranate turnip cakes with yellow daikon and herbs, Sichuan hibiscus octopus, and Phung’s dad’s aromatic duck salad with house hoisin and bitter leaves. Down the line, she plans to put Cantonese soups and bone broths on the menu.
Family remains at the heart of everything. Phung grew up learning to cook in her parents’ Chinese takeaway, and though they’re now retired, they still lend a hand with prep for her residencies and catering gigs. “Mum’s on starters, dad does the ducks. I make the hoisin. My dad keeps telling me to learn how to roast duck, and I’m like, ‘Nah, no one does it like him,’” she says, laughing. “It’s really sweet to be working with family again. We all have our jobs – it’s like clockwork, and I give them pocket money.”
Ling Ling’s evolution from Sunday roasts to family-style Cantonese aligns with where Phung has come from and where she’s headed next. “It’s still early days,” she says. “But it feels like a really good fit. We’re just getting started.”
Ling Ling’s at Godet
382 Essex Rd, N1 3PF
Hours:
Wed to Fri 5pm–9pm
Sat 3pm–9pm
Sun 3pm–8pm
