Steaks in London

[Toufas]

i didnt like the aberdeen angus steakhouse when i went last summer, and i am looking for a normal priced place to enjoy some good steak. a wide selection of steaks (like maze grill for example) is a plus and the steak frites are almost as important as the steak

[ravelda]

Some of the best steaks I have had have been at Hawksmoor. They have a good range of steaks and cook them so they have a nice char on the outside but remain juicy and pink in the middle. The last few times I have been the chips were on the money, although my early experiences there left me disappointed as they lacked that crispness you would expect. Hawksmoor say that if you have a particular cut that you want, if it is not on their menu and you let them know in advance that you would like it, they will get it for you.

Prices are not cheap, however much more reasonable than Maze Grill, and they have fantastic cocktails.

[Winot]

I had a very good steak recently at Gaucho Grill on Chancery Lane (it's a chain).

[SaladFingers]

The Big Easy. Steak and onion rings *kisses lips*. The place also has an amazing atmosphere.

[SBonner]

Smiths of Smithfields has had decent steaks on several different visits.

[bigchreesh]

I'd recommend:

1. Buen Ayre. It's in Broadway Market in Hackney, so off the beaten track for most (nearest Tube, Bethnal Green, nearest rail, London Fields). It's a little Argenintian joint, a favourite of the Argentinian ambassador and absolutely wonderful. Near-Hawksmoor quality for a fraction of the price. You can quite comfortably eat to your heart's content for £30 per head.

2. Hix Chop House and Maze Grill need to be put down here as new openings that have been praised for their steaks. Both quite expensive though. Maze Grill has an US broiler that Jason Atherton brought over the pond after seeing how our American cousins made their steaks charred on the outside but soft and pink inside.

[Aidan Brooks]

I must put in a second plug for Buen Ayre in Hackney's Broadway Market. It's probably the only restaurant in Hackney where booking is necessary almost every day.

http://www.buenayre.co.uk/

Simple dishes of great Argentinean steaks perfectly cooked a la plancha with offal and salad accompaniments. Fine dining it isn't - a great dinner out it certainly is.

[naebody]

Popeseye. Steaks, 'til you can't steaks no more.

[Sacha Novak]

Any of these places do USDA Prime beef by any chance? I have been trying to find somewhere that does it in the london area for a while now. I have the need for prime grain fed beef.

[Gary Marshall]

maze

[brokentelephone]

There is a great french place near my house in South Kensington that does a terrific Steak Frites dinner special. Everything else on the menu is quite expensive, but the special is around 11 or 12 pounds, and includes a starter!

Its called La Bouche and its on Brompton Road, near the S. Ken tube!

[sandra]

El Gaucho, one at Chelsea Framer's Market and one at Old Brompton Road - Argentine beef on a wood fire grill

Le Relais de Venise in Marylebone, steak frites, no choice of cut, but good sauce

[bigchreesh]

Any of these places do USDA Prime beef by any chance? I have been trying to find somewhere that does it in the london area for a while now. I have the need for prime grain fed beef.

←

Maze Grill does. It's quite pricey though.

[nikkib]

just back from the most amazing lunch at maze grill, The Creekstone usda beef was indeed a revelation. At £40 for a ribeye compared to £23 for the casterbridge hopes were high but truly did not dsappoint. We were compd a couple of aperitifs and starters (as i used to work for GRH) but truly the best steak i have eaten and well worth every penny. The Set lunch menu (which we intended on eating) at £15 for 2 courses looked delicious (sardines on toast/onglet steak etc) too but my thrift filter tends to disappear on nearing places such as grosvenor sq..... Cannot recommend highly enough

[howardlong]

just back from the most amazing lunch at maze grill, The Creekstone usda beef was indeed a revelation. At £40 for a ribeye compared to £23 for the casterbridge hopes were high but truly did not dsappoint. We were compd a couple of aperitifs and starters (as i used to work for GRH) but truly the best steak i have eaten and well worth every penny. The Set lunch menu (which we intended on eating) at £15 for 2 courses looked delicious (sardines on toast/onglet steak etc) too but my thrift filter tends to disappear on nearing places such as grosvenor sq..... Cannot recommend highly enough

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Despite an earlier false start I had some time ago, Maze Grill has more recently turned out to be a good option.

Good: if it's the steak you're after, there's not anything I'm aware of that's better for quality and selection in town. Roasted garlic thingy super. Surprisingly the wine list is not stupid either.

Bad: Octopus starter I had recently was the only bad thing I've ever had, it had a taste and texture of a dry soya substituted chicken. Service is really very mediocre too. This may be harsh conjecture, but I just had this feeling that remuneration isn't the best out on the floor. If you want good service, we all know you need at least a solid leadership of Frenchmen/women. At the Maze Grill it's rather like the latest experiment on Indian subcontinent outsourcing, so you can imagine the interesting cultural and language misunderstandings that can and do happen. One last thing that comes to mind, like any Ramsay place, it does attract the irritation of the odd fawning Gordon groupie. Plus the infamous Ramsay 2 hour table turn.

Still, all in all a rather enjoyable way to spend one's Sunday afternoons if you can avoid being pushed out.

Cheers, H

Edited May 14, 2009 by howardlong (log)

[Andrew]

I'd be interested to know people's view on the best steak in London. Goodmans comes highly recommended as does Hawksmoor. I've always been impressed by Hawksmoor but never been to Goodmans so views welcome.

Thanks

Andrew

[Matthew Grant]

Goodmans - grass or corn fed beef, a good variety of cuts, a selection of US meat, some more supplied by O'Sheas (the best Butcher in London) and they age their own meat. I've not had a better steak in London except at Hedone but that really isn;t what you would regard as a steak house.

Hawksmoor - Longhorn supplied by the Ginger Pig - good but not on the same level as Goodmans imo.

[Gary Marshall]

I agree goodman no 1, hawksmoor no 2.

Burger at goodman is the value buy, £13 i think incl fries and all toppings.

[cheeekymunkey]

I also agree that Goodman is superior to Hawksmoor.

Hawksmoor is consistently inconsistent when it comes to how you like it cooked. In my (several) experiences, what one orders does not always relate to what one receives. That said, when it's right, it is extremely table, but that's not a gamble I should need to take...

... especially when Goodman is nearby, which offers better consistency and variety.

[Juniper]

Another vote for Goodman here. Just prefer the atmosphere, service and steaks there. Hawksmoor is good, but I've never been served anything less than perfect at Goodman, whereas I had the ropiest bit of cow ever at Hawksmoor last year (ok, they took it off the bill, but it should never have left the kitchen).

[olicollett]

I've only been to Goodman once, keep meaning to return but it's always been booked up when I've looked. Hawksmoor Seven Dials is always good, but the problem I have found with steak is that if you know where to source good meat and how to prepare & cook it properly you can do a very good meal with some friends at home for half the price and relatively little effort.

One thing that did put me off Hawksmoor recently was discovering they don't salt their beef until just before it goes on the grill, rather than giving the beef a longer salting to season the meat properly. Apparently they prefer the results this way - fair enough I guess.

[cheeekymunkey]

when it's right, it is extremely table

Weird.

I think 'table' was meant to be 'tasty'.

[Matthew Grant]

Two schools of thought there, if you season with salt in advance it draws out moisture that you may wish to preserve especially if the meat has been dry aged for any length of time. That surface moisture can also prevent getting a decent crust.

I totally agree with you regarding getting a good piece of meat and cooking it at home however I think Goodman is the only place in London I can get a better steak than I can normally buy and cook at home. If we move away from steak houses I reckon I can cook a better meal at home 75% of the time but if I thought about that too much I'd never eat out and eating out isn't all (I say this through gritted teeth) about the food

Edited November 15, 2011 by Matthew Grant (log)

[olicollett]

Two schools of thought there, if you season with salt in advance it draws out moisture that you may wish to preserve especially if the meat has been dry aged for any length of time.

I totally agree with you regarding getting a good piece of meat and cooking it at home however I think Goodman is the only place in London I can get a better steak than I can normally buy and cook at home. If we move away from steak houses I reckon I can cook a better meal at home 75% of the time but if I thought about that too much I'd never eat out and eating out isn't all (I say this through gritted teeth) about the food

I won't go too much into the drawing out moisture thing but it's a bit more complicated than that - especially if you're salting for 20mins or more

But yes as you say it's not all about the food!

[IanT]

I'm surprised to see so many votes for Goodman. Hawksmoor wins by a distance for me.

I've been to Hawksmoor 20+ times and Goodman 5 or 6 times and would allow that it's pretty close between them on grass fed steaks. Goodman's USDA beef has been very disappointing on the two times I've had it.

Everything else, however, is clearly in Hawksmoor's favour for me. Sides are much better, cocktail programme is superb, wine list is better and I much prefer the feel and atmosphere of the whole operation. I've been going to both from Day 1, Hawksmoor feels like a labour of love (albeit one that is slowly becoming a chain), Goodman felt like the first branch of a chain the day it openend.

PS Matthew, Hedone is a good restaurant but its steak (although obviously a beautfiul piece of meat) was not at this level.

Edited November 15, 2011 by IanT (log)