EMMA BARTHOLOMEW finds an extensive beer list at Mason and Company and Italian American influenced food from Capish?

I’m still dreaming of the milky chocolate-y stout at Mason and Company.

I’ve never been a huge fan of beer – but Gypsy Hill’s ‘Nomad’ brew has knocked that on the head.

“Smooth and indulgent, think cocoa powder rounded with vanilla,” it is described on the extensive brew list – which takes up three whole pages.

The restaurant in Canalside – a parade in the former 2012 broadcasting building which is now Here East - is the best example I’ve seen yet of a bar to have capitalised on the plethora of craft brewers experimenting with weird and unique flavours.

Not surprising considering it was set up by Ed Mason of Hackney’s Five Points brewery.

Tempting descriptions of the likes of beer tinged with the “taste of sour cherries evolving into a deep taste of Maderia wine” pique my curiosity. I’d never heard of serving beer in thirds before - but it means you can test out more flavours without total inebriation.

If I was out for an evening with mates I’d have certainly tried more than the chocolate concoction, but with my teenage twin sons in tow, we kept the drinking to a minimum.

The ambiance is also alluring. Light and airy, with a mix of white and light wood, there are cosy booths down one side. Lights behind the wood cleverly create patterns – rather than the projections they appear to be. It’s mellow and original.

“What’s Capish?” I asked my sons, pronouncing it a bit like “peckish” as we cast our eyes over the food menu.

“You don’t say it like that,” my sons told me. “It’s cap-eesh. You get me,” one of them had to explain its meaning.

Capish? was the name of the street food pop-up, and the Italian New York style food is served on metal trays and paper plates. Sandwiches include the delicious steak braciole, with a 45-day aged meat cooked for six hours in a Genovese sauce, making it really tender.

I opted for the bun-less version - visually stunning, served on a bed of bright green kale and pink homemade pickled onions.

Courgette fries had sold out, but the ‘Italian poutine’ was seriously good. For £5 you get a load of chips topped with beef ragu and some pickle to boot.

Craft beer meets street food in a permanent venue at Mason and Company, and it’s a winner.

Mason and Company, 25 East Bay Lane, Here East, E20 3BS masonandcompany.co.uk.