Tag: steak

Lunch at Goodman, Mayfair

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There’s steak and then there’s STEAK. Goodman serves the one in capitals; the type of steak that is full of flavour and melts like butter in your mouth.

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As you can see, this is proper steak. Perfection.

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Good steak is one thing, but the sides are almost as important. Almost. It is so disappointing when you have a nice proper steak cooked to perfection but with average side dishes like slightly soggy chips and an awful sauce. But Goodman has got it; the chunky chips are utterly crispy on the outside and wonderfully fluffy within. The truffle chips I ordered also had a nice truffle taste, from oil, but still.

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The spinach was also nice and the portion generous and the mash was velvety and delicious.

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And the sauce past the test too. The bernaise sauce was thick and a nice acidity. Det ultimata testet är ändå alltid bearnaisesåsen.

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Goodman, 24-26 Maddox St, London W1S 1QH

For more steak, have a look at my Hawksmoor review.

Lunch at Flat Iron, Soho

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I love the rustle and bustle in Soho and that there is such an eclectic mix of restaurants. A new-ish restaurant I tried a couple of weeks ago has a very limited menu but offers, as the name suggests, flatiron steak. One of my favourite cuts; quite grainy fibers but very tender meat.

Like a lot of Soho’s restaurant, this is a first come, first serve type place with no table reservations. Arriving in the middle of the lunch rush we were lucky to nab the last two seats at one of the communal tables.

As soon as we sat down water and a bowl of popcorn appeared at the table. Awesome!

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The menu is sparse with only the flatiron steak and sides or today’s special; a slowcooked beef stew. My colleague and I both went for the steak, cooked medium-rare as suggested by the waitress with chips, bearnaise sauce and a side of creamed spinach to share.

The steak was really nice and the chips crispy. The bearnaise sauce (which I am extremely picky with) got my approval, although it had a tad too much vinegar in it.

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I really like this place. It’s unpretentious and what you see is what you get. And the food is well-prepared, very tasty and not expensive at all. It makes perfect sense to start this type of restaurant in recession. Good steak restaurants in London are, let’s face it, quite expensive and so many places offers very disappointing steak although for a better price.

To instead specialize in just one cut (but a great and affordable one) to keep the costs down is in my opinion, brilliant.

Flat Iron, 17 Beak St, Soho, London W1F 9RW

Dinner at Antika, Stari Grad, Croatia

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One of that last night on the yacht we decided to all eat together in pretty Stari Grad, at the Antika restaurant, recommended by our skipper.

It was a cosy courtyard restaurant full to the brim with guests so it was pretty buzzing, but we also noticed there was some kind of children’s play on at the square just adjacent, which created a bit of extra noise. We could have coped with that but then the spectators thought it was fine to stand around us between the tables to cheer and take photos. Needless to say we were rather unimpressed.

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Eventually the play ended though and we could finally enjoy our dinner conversation. The food however was very good. Most in our group had the breaded and baked feta salad as a starter. It was huge (consisting of a whole block of feta, breaded and baked plus salad items) so although it was very good I was glad I saved myself for my steak.

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From the moment our skipper had mentioned the word steak I knew what I was having and it was probably the best priced piece of fillet steak I’ll ever eat. Very tender too and the creamy gorgonzola sauce with dill was lovely too. Perhaps nor local cuisine, but very good.

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Gaby had the seafood in a white wine and tomato sauce which was also delicious. And we even ‘met’ a new type of mullusc. It looked like a cross between a muscle and an oyster, it was cooked like the mussels but you had to open it yourself (i.e. it didn’t open itself while cooking) but neither the taste nor texture was that nice; it was rather chewy and bland. Fun to try though!

IMG_5303Antika, Duonjo kola, Stari Grad, Croatia

I never tire of steak and bearnaise sauce

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I could full well have a blue sirloin for breakfast, which you can here, but it feels a little too extravagant for everyday. However, I can get such steak and bearnaise cravings that I would whip up a batch of sauce just for me, which might sound a bit laborious, but I can assure you it is – if not completely normal – worth it.

Bearnaise sauce, serves 1

just about 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp dried tarragon

1 tbsp water

1 egg yolk, at room temperature

50 g butter, cold/at room temperature and cut into cubes 

Pour vinegar and tarragon into a non-stick (small) saucepan. Reduce on high heat and turn the fan on high (it has a strong smell). Be careful not to burn the tarragon. Once most of the liquid has evaporated remove from heat and add the water. This will soak up the flavours left in the pan. Leave to cool a little then add the egg yolk. Use low heat or a bain marie and add one butter cube and let it melt while whisking. It is important to whisk continuously. Add the cubes a few at the time, once melted add a few more and repeat until they have all melted. Take care while continuing whisking for the sauce to thicken. One thick and warm remove from heat but continue to whisk for a little while. Adjust the seasoning and serve. 

Dinner at Hawksmoor Guildhall

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My summer was rather packed with fun things, and while busy having fun, I didn’t have time to update you about everything. Like going to Hawksmoor for the first time and loving it. 

Linus, a friend from home whom I have known since secondary school, came to visit during the Olympics. When trying to decide where to go for supper one evening, I asked him what type of food he would like. The answer came quicky: – Meat.

I have been wanting to go to Hawksmoor for ages and saw my chance, and managed to book a table for the following day. As most Londoners I expected London to be super busy during the Games, and thought it almost impossible to get a dinner reservation with short notice. This was not the case, however, when we got to the restaurant in the City on a Friday night it was far from full and the staff said that it was very quiet during the Olympics.

Once seated at our rustic dark wood table, both Linus and I couldn’t help but drool over the massive steak at the table next to us. It was a moment of ‘We’re having what he’s having’, after takling to the knowledgable waitress about the different cuts. Our neighbour had a Porterhouse steak, so we had one too, to share as it weighed in at 900 g.

We also had crispy delicious chips, the best bearnaise sauce I’ve ever had in a restaurant (and it was a generous portion too), fried portobello mushrooms and a bottle of red.

With that much meat we ate slowly to be able to really enjoy it and finish it.
We both really enjoyed this meal. The restaurant has a relaxed atmosphere, the grub is really good, the meat amazing (so full of flavour) and the staff both knowledable, pleasant and a little laid back.

There are plenty of steak restaurants in London and without trying them all, I think I can say that Hawksmoor is definitely up there with the best ones!

Hawksmoor Guildhall
10 Basinghall Stree
London EC2V 5BQ

Gaucho, Piccadilly

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A little while ago now, we managed to meet up with Ian and Anna for dinner at Gaucho, this meat-centered restaurant serving Argentinian steaks.

There are a few Gaucho’s to choose from in London, and we settled for the Piccadilly branch in between Piccadilly and Regent Street. The decor is typical for the chain of restaurants and consists of a lot of cow skin, dark wood and dimmed lights.

Anna and I had been shopping during the day so we took the opportunity to sit down with a drink and relax before the boys arrived. I had a glass of sparkling wine and Anna fresh cranberry juice. When the boys arrived we were directed upstairs to the dining room. We thought it would be quite empty on a Sunday night, as we haven’t seen many prople arriving when we were in the bar, but the dining room was almost full.

The menu at Gaucho’s was a bit disappointing with regards to starters and desserts, but the steaks (the reason we were here) did not disappoint. A waitress also walks around the restaurant with a big wooden board displaying the different cuts of meat and explains to the tables what cuts they are and how they are best cooked.

The menu was a bit disappointing with regards to starters and desserts, but the steaks (the reason we were here) did not disappoint. A waitress also walks around the restaurant with a big wooden board displaying the different cuts of meat and explains to the tables what cuts they are and how they are best cooked.

We went straight to the maincourse. Anna decided on their burger which she found really food and especially the dressing with mayonnaise, mustard and red wine was superb.

Both Ian and I chose the fillet medallion. I asked for mine blue and Ian had his rare. We also ordered fries and sauce. Bearnaise (always) for me and peppercorn for Ian.

Christopher wanted a large steak and settled for 400g sirloin and the same trimmings as me. Christopher was the only one out of which was slightly disappointed, as he thought the steak was as good as the ones we eat at home. We normally I have sirloin, from Aberdeen Angus, just like these, so I could see his point. Because I ordered a cut I don’t eat as often, I was very happy with mine. It was cooked perfectly, had lots of flavour and was so tender I compared to to cutting butter. And this was with a normal knife I might add, no steak knives needed at Gaucho.

I really like Gaucho, and my meat was spectacular. The fries were just regular fries and to be honest a little on the soggy side. The bearnaise wasn’t thick enough and tasted a bit too much of tarragon, so there is room for improvement on other areas.