The verb to temper means to ‘improve the consistency of a substance by heating it or adding particular substances to it,’ according to the dictionary. And this, simply put, is the angle that this slightly hectic but very on-trend new dining spot in Soho promises. Its website proclaims that the offer at Temper is one of ‘barbecue, tacos, wine, mescal and good times.’ In the last respect in particular, this is perhaps a bold claim, although one on which the restaurant mostly, but by no means totally, delivered. Diners arriving here descend to a subterranean basement where there is a choice of tables or seats at the bar, where there is the well-trodden option of observing the culinary theatre of the place. We were seated at the bar, which was fine, but an initial quibble might be that the stools were placed rather too closely together and not all that comfortable to sit upon. The place was definitely busy and full of atmosphere on our weekday lunchtime visit, but the relative discomfort of the seating was compounded by the inordinately long wait for our dishes. Before assessing the food, service stands out in the memory as generally in need of improvement. It was generally quite hard to attract waiters’ attention, we got the wrong dishes brought to us on one occasion, and while our server conveniently did remember to bring the bill to us at the end of the meal, he forgot the coffees we had ordered simultaneously. Onto the food, and here – as almost everywhere else pseudo-trendy – it’s all about sharing. Temper is unambiguously about meat, smoked and spiced in a variety of formats. Our dishes were all well-conceived and presented beautifully, but what they gained in these respects, they did sometimes lose in subtlety. Chilli beef tortillas and crab & pickled pork skin tacos were stand-out among the starters. The two meat options we also selected for our mains (lamb and goat) were tasty, with an unctuous smoky depth, but we found ourselves overwhelmed by a spice-heavy jerk-cauliflower side. So, mostly good times, but still work for Temper to do. Also, be prepared, when you leave, your clothes will smell of smoke…