CK It has been a busy couple of weeks for Eat Reviewer – thanks for keeping up with the posts. Next week, it’s competition time so keep liking and sharing! Read on for a review of Shamo’s: they invited me to review them & I was accompanied by my two sons aged 6 & 3.
Shamo’s on Avebury Avenue, South Tonbridge
Shamo’s is the latest addition to our growing gastronomic scene & is positioned in South Tonbridge, on Avebury Avenue. Sharan & Amo (hence the name) opened Shamo’s, about 3 months’ ago.
The menu is succinct which I like (quality over quantity) & there is a children’s menu too. Shamo’s markets itself as a burger & milkshake joint, but there is something for everyone: fish dishes (these are starters but Shamo’s are happy for diners to order the starters as ‘tapas’), veggie dishes and they happily accommodate coeliacs with gluten free chips & bun-less burgers.
After our very warm welcome, my sons both ordered one of Shamo’s trademark milkshakes: made with ice cream, they’re decadently thick & have lots of different flavours, including alcoholic ones for grown-ups. They are served in lovely Kilner jars with lots of whipped cream on top – a real treat.
My sons and I chose the calamari (from the main menu) as a sharing starter & it really was a joy to eat – it was cooked to perfection, with the right amount of bite, encased in delicious, golden batter.
We pondered over the menu for some time but I finally settled on the Tonbridge Cheese Steak. This is inspired by the Philly cheese steak, a baguette filled with cheese & steak from Philadelphia, USA & I thought it was unusual for somewhere in the UK, let alone Tonbridge to be serving it! It arrived in a brioche bun (the Tonbridge twist – & it worked) with gluten free ‘fat’ chips (menu says fries but they’re definitely chips) and a pot of ‘slaw. I only intended to eat half of the cheese steak as it looked enormous….but it was so good that I polished it off. The steak was just right and the cheese was all gooey, melting all over the chunks of meat, just as I remembered it. Clean eating this is not, but, boy, it was really good. The ‘slaw on the side was a little disappointing though: too heavy on the mayonnaise for me; I like some crunch.
The boys both chose the breaded chicken burger from the children’s menu, freshly breaded in Shamo’s kitchen. Our waitress was more than happy to take instruction to remove any hint of salad from the burgers at my sons’ behest and so they arrived ‘naked’ in their brioche buns accompanied by chips and corn on the cob. Sadly, my younger son had filled up on his milkshake and so he barely touched his burger, chomping only on a few chips. Luckily Shamo’s kindly provided a doggy bag, complete with fresh chips & the boys could decant their milkshakes into takeaway cups.
We visited Shamo’s at about 5pm & it was quiet so a good time to take children, despite lacking a little atmosphere. The customer service was excellent, our every need met; we left, replete & content.
The food was definitely a hit with my elder son who said Shamo’s was his new favourite place to eat in Tonbridge, and with me. I will certainly return and think an evening visit with a group would be fun….but I’ll make sure I have my alcoholic milkshake as a pud rather than an aperitif.
Experience Ingredients
In the group: 1 ad + 2 ch
Consumption & cost: 2 x milkshake, 1 x sparkling water, 1 x starter; 3 x mains £32
