salt beef in london

[cappers]

hi

can someone please tell me asap where the places are to eat salt beef in central london (soho / west end) im looking for a casual informal place with good salt beef.

thanks

[Tonyfinch]

Easily the best salt beef in the West End is served at Gabys near Leicester Sq. on Charing Cross Rd.

Hot,moist,pure brisket(silverside is heretical) and,most importantly,a good ratio of FAT.

People who ask for salt beef without fat are completely missing the point.

And if you're going to have a salt beef sandwich the bread must be caraway and the mustard must be English.

Dogmatic,moi?

[Jon Tseng]

slightly out of the way but I think reubens on baker street is decent, though have never got round to visiting yet (royal china across the road always too tempting).  There's also a salf beef bar in selfridges, but pricy

the lack of decent SB is one of my biggest beefs (sorry) about london - when you do find it its generally an inspipid chunk injected with goodness knows what a la the worst factory-bacon.  do any of the denizens of leafy north london know any good joints?

cheerio

jon

[Tonyfinch]

Jon,the best salt beef in (far) North London is to be found at the B&K Salt Beef Bar in Edgware.They also make the best fried gefilte fish balls I know.

If that's too remote good salt beef can be found at Harry Morgan's in St. John's Wood,though you have to ask them specifically to serve it with the fat.They also do decent hot tongue-a delicious Jewish speciality that's becoming even rarer than good salt beef.

The salt beef served at the famous Brick Lane Beigel Bake is of poor quality and ,I've always found the salt beef at both Reuben's and Bloom's in Golders Green to be on the dry side.

[John Whiting]

Continue north along the Finchley Road past Temple Fortune and on the right, shortly before you get to Staples Corner [the A1], there's an old Mom & Pop (Mameh & Tateh?) salt beef caff that serves good generous sandwiches at a reasonable price.

[Tonyfinch]

In the interests of research had salt beef sandwiches from the Brick Lane Beigel Bake (my nearest) this evening.

Had a sandwich rather than a beigel as I find the beigels too heavy and chewy for salt beef.

The salt beef was moist and served in great chunks and there was plenty of it and it was cheap (£2.20 a sandwich). However it was too salty- a sign that corners were being cut in terms of soaking and cooking-maybe not surprising in terms of the incredible turn over there,. Salt beef should not actually be salty but,like salt cod,the salt should impart a rich and savoury underpinning  to the final product.In this case I felt my blood pressure soaring as I was eating and I've already downed three pints of water since.

I just thought-a salt beef and hot tongue sandwich stand at Borough Market would go down a treat. Anyone interested in going into business?

[Steve Plotnicki]

"They also make the best fried gefilte fish balls I know"

Tony-That is outright blasphemy. Frying gefilte fish? Blech. Only in England. What was the next course, deep fried haggis? And eating salt beef or any kind of delicatessen on a bagel is barbaric. Bagels are for fish, the smoked type. Maybe you can get away with tuna or egg salad. But meat on a bagel? Are you sure you're Jewish?

I think the next time I'm in London I want to organize the Great Salt Beef taste test. Maybe we can write an article for The Evening Standard.

[cappers]

thank you all. i shall carry on my quest. tell me more about Gaby's on charing cross road? where is it on charring cross road ?

[Tonyfinch]

Cappers,Gaby's is next to the theatre(The Wyndham's I think) which is next to Leicester Sq. tube on the Covent Gdn. side of Charing Cross Rd.

It has been there for donkeys years,is(or was) run by Israelis and used to be called Gaby's Continental Restaurant.Several years ago it had a makeover and dropped the 'continental' bit,but it still serves mostly mid-eastern staples (falaafel in pitta,stuffed aubergine, kebebs with tahini etc.) along with hot salt beef and latkes(I'm not sure if they serve hot tongue).

The food in general is very ordinary there but I was truly impressed by the salt beef on my last visit and its not an expensive place,given the location.

Steve -OY GEVALT! You mean you don't have fried gefilte fish balls and patties in NYC?? I can't believe it. Do you mean you only have those grey boiled lumps? We'll have to have both a salt beef AND a gefilte fish tasting. We can do it at my flat in Wapping but it'll take a bit of organising as I'll have to call in samples from Jewish London. Let me know if you're serious and we can get an e-gullet group together and I'll invite the Jewish Chronicle.

[Wilfrid]

The best place used to be a little sandwich bar on Great Windmill Street, but after decades of service it turned into some bento box joint.

I would now commend the Nosherie, a kosher restaurant with sanwiches to go, in the vicinity of Leather Lane market.

[Simon Majumdar]

The Nosherie is very good and all the better for being a 24hr joint.

S

[Wilfrid]

I didn't know that, Simon.  I tend not to hang around Leather Lane after midnight.

[Steve Plotnicki]

Tony-I'm afraid we are going to have to stick with salt beef only. Since I developed an intolerance for wheat gluten, my gefilte fish days are over. Same with kishka, or stuffed derma if they call it that there. Spicy mustad and chips are good though.

[Tonyfinch]

Steve.You're on. We'll omit Gefilte Fish (thank God) and do a comparative Salt Beef tasting. Have to time it right to get samples in otherwise it'll all taste like salty shoe leather. Let's pick a date and people can bring wine and I'll provide chips(or potatoes in some form) Anybody else out there interested?

[Steve Plotnicki]

Tony-I was su[pposed to be there the week of May 13-16. But it might be rescheduled for the first week in June. I will know in a week or so.

[macrosan]

Steve, you can't do the first week in June. That's the next Peter Luger lunch, remember ? That's when I'm in Chicago/New York.

Incidentally, you're right about meat on beigels    Beigels are for salt or pickled herring, or cream cheese with chives or smoked salmon.

Rye bread is for meat.

But what is for appetizing ?

[Gavin Jones]

I am endlessly ridiculed by flatmate for pointing out that pork products are inappropriate contents of a beigel.

Dear agony aunt, am I correct in this stance?

[Jinmyo]

I am endlessly ridiculed by flatmate for pointing out that pork products are inappropriate contents of a beigel.

Dear agony aunt, am I correct in this stance?

Well, there's bacon...

[Tonyfinch]

I am endlessly ridiculed by flatmate for pointing out that pork products are inappropriate contents of a beigel.

Dear agony aunt, am I correct in this stance?

Dear Gavin .Your fear and confusion are perfectly normal and more common than you think. Set aside your concerns. Pork products on a beigel are perfectly OK as long as they come from Jewish pigs.

Trust that's helped

Auntie Tony

[Adam_Balic]

"They also make the best fried gefilte fish balls I know"

Tony-That is outright blasphemy. Frying gefilte fish? Blech. Only in England. What was the next course, deep fried haggis?

Steve - I'm very much afraid that deep fried Haggis is a bit of a staple up here in Scotland, as well as black pudding, pizza (yes battered and fried) and almost anything else that is considered edible.

This Salt Beef, sounds like what would be called Corned beef in Australia (Silverside or rolled brisket, brined then boiled). Is this correct? I have bought Corned beed sandwiches here, but the "meat" is some type of gelatine bound meat mush, a little like brawn, but not very tasty. Should I look out for Salt beef instead? Do butchers here sell Salt beef to cook at home?

[Simon Majumdar]

Although it is not exactly a storefront joint, don't dismiss the Salt beef bar in the Selfridges food hall.  

It is usually packed and on the occasions I have tried it, it has been very good.  Not Gaby's but very good

S

[Tonyfinch]

Adam,salt beef MUST be brisket. It need not be rolled. It CANNOT be silverside.It must be eaten either hot or at room temperature,preferably on the day it was boiled. Jewish dietry laws forbid the mixing of meat and dairy products so a salt beef sandwich needs a proportion of fat to lubricate it.

What the Brits call Corned Beef is  a product containing meat which has been processed with other ingredients into a sludge and can be bought from blocks in a deli or in tins. The Quality Chop House on Farringdon Rd serve it up with eggs as a hash at Sunday brunch

[Adam_Balic]

Yes that's the shite I have had. I think that what I am thinking of is Salt Beef then (Corned Beef in Australia). Will an average butcher sell this, or would I have to a) find a Scottish Kosher butcher; b) make it myself (again, I had to make Ricotta the other day as the only stuff I get here is the commercial cude that comes in a plastic container)?

[AdamLawrence]

Adam, can you explain how you make your ricotta? (I too am frustrated by the quality of the commercial stuff. You can occasionally get fresh ricotta in Italian delis though. I'm surprised Valvona and Crolla doesn't sell it).

cheers

Adam

[Adam_Balic]

Adam - V&C may very well have it, but I rarely go in there (the place makes me angry, hugely inflated prices).

I can't remember where I picked up this technique, otherwise I would quote the source, so apologies to all concerned.

This is a non-tradional method, but gives you a good ricotta (lasts for about 3-4 days in the refridgerator).

Take 2 litres of milk (best you can get, sheep milk if you can get it), 500 ml cream add juice of one lemon. Heat very slowly up to 80.C (about three hours), if it boils start again. When the mild reaches 80.C, you should see curds forming, skim these off into a perforated plastic container ( I poke tiny holes in the bottom half of a milk container). Keep skimming until there are no more curds forming. Allow ricotta to drain, place in clean container and refridgerate.

If no curd start forming at 80.C add more lemon juice or increase temperature slightly. A flame difuser helps, but you can get by without one.

True ricotta is made from the milky whey left over from the cheese making proper (after curds are drained off) this version is still very good and you can give it to Vegans and ilk.