Beast (description of how my guest ate and name of the restaurant)

I was born a meat eater (actually that's not true, I was born a milk drinker, but you get my point) and I'll die a meat eater. I make no secret for my love of steak and particularly the Goodman Restaurant so when I heard they were opening a new restaurant ominously named Beast that specialised in king crab and steak I knew they could only be onto a winner.

There is a distinctly Norwegian banquet feel to the restaurant. As you go down the elevator to the basement the doors open and you're greeted by the site of huge slabs of meat hung and being dry aged room and giant king crabs in tanks.

 The dining area has two huge wooden medieval communal banquet tables so you're sharing tables with other guests. The theme of sharing goes through to the menu too with the Beast experience set menu. Ok I warn you now, don't come here slightly hungry, don't even come here hungry, only come here if you feel like you've been trapped on a desert island for the past 2 months with only coconuts for sustenance and a volleyball for a friend (I'm watching Castaway as I write this) because the food that comes your way is not in short supply. To start you get antipasti of Parmesan, olives, pickled onions and artichokes served with 7 year aged balsamic vinegar. It was decent enough but didn't exactly set hearts racing but the menu is sensibly planned because you certainly do not want to be full come the main course.

In preparation for the main event, the server helps put your Beast bib on, a nice touch and helps build the anticipation. First out came the the 800g of USDA bone-in ribeye. When the server said we were getting a 800g steak to share i thought 'come on, is that it??' The last time I went to Hawksmoor I ate a kilo alone. But you don't realise how much food there is until it's all laid out in front of you. The steak was perfectly cooked, had a beautiful crust and juicy medium rare in the middle. Cooking steak doesn't have to be complicated but can so easily be ruined, the Goodman Group are true masters of their craft. Was it the best steak I've ever had? Probably not, and that's only because I prefer British beef, but this was easily the best USDA I've had.

The absolute showstopper of the meal was the king crab sourced from the Arctic Circle. Now I've never been the biggest crab fan, have always preferred lobster and unless shellfish has been cooked the Chinese way i.e. in ginger and spring onion I'm normally a tad disappointed but this king crab knocked it out of the park! At first it seems quite cumbersome to eat but the kitchen has done the majority of the work for you by cracking the legs open, it's pretty much just pull the shells apart and rip out the meat. If you've never had king crab, these things are huge, the flesh is extremely meaty, not flakey like a Dorset crab and there is a sweetness to it which is normally synonymous with really good quality lobster. Accompanied with the crab are a variety of sauces, the stand out one being the truffle sauce, get a huge chunk of meat (crab or steak), dip it in the steak and forget about any stresses you have in life for a few moments! Also don't feel rushed when tackling this meal, make every effort to get all the meat out of the crab because it really is worth it.

To go with the meat there were sides of smoked tomatoes, a trio of beets, celariac, carrots and a green salad. One thing I have to say, I've been to Goodman a few times and their sides are probably one of the best in London, you've got the brilliant mac and cheese and those truffle chips! I do get the logic at Beast, they don't want to overload you with carbs given all the meat you had to deal with but I can't help thinking that this set menu would be elevated so much by having a portion of those truffle chips on the side! Only a minor gripe (and only one because I'm a greedy bastard).

To finish of the meal we opted for the lemon mousse and chocolate mousse. The lemon was pretty tangy and the chocolate was sweet but not too heavy, the caramel went well with it too. Not the best desserts I've had but a nice way to round of this set.

I get a feeling that your evening at Beast is pretty much geared towards the main course, it feels like the main event and it's pretty much the reason why you go to Beast. I have minor quibbles with the meal and at £75 per head it's not the cheapest but the crab and steak is easily good enough to get me going back for more, looking forward to round 2.

Ember Yard

I'm a carnivore, I only really eat vegetables because my mum nagged me as a kid and I don't want scurvy or anything weird like that. Luckily London has a fine array of establishments to satisfy my meat cravings. Ember Yard definitely goes on this list.

Ember Yard is the latest restaurant from the acclaimed Salt Yard Group, I've been frequenting it for a while now and each time I go it doesn't disappoint. I went on the opening night and each time I've returned it's still been as busy. There is a grilled, smokey theme to the menu and they pretty much hit the mark with each dish. 

To start my companion and I went for the Buttermilk Fried Squid with Smoked Aioli, fried to perfection, just the right amount of crispness without making the squid rubbery and not at all greasy, it was extremely moreish. The squid ink aioli was garlicky without being overpowering and gave it a nice umami hit.

The next dish to arrive was the Smoked Chorizo Skewer. Now I'm not normally a fan of chorizo, I'm more of a lap cheong kind of guy but I absolutely loved this, really tender and subtly smoked.

Worst picture ever

I absolutely love their Iberico Chips with Chorizo Ketchup. They are thick cut, it has a slight crunch on the outside and extremely fluffy inside. One thing, they need to be more generous with the Chorizo Ketchup!

No idea why I'm bothering to upload these pictures!

The next dish was the star of the meal and probably one of favourite things to eat in London; the Iberico Presa. The Presa is considered the best cut from the Iberian Pig, the Wagyu beef of pork. I've got to admit, I was a bit dubious about eating rare pork at first but oh man this is the right way to cook Presa! It has a wonderfully charred crust on the outside which contrasts with the amazingly tender middle. To accompany the meat they serve it with a Jamon Butter which just increased the buttery texture of the meat. This is a must order dish if you ever find yourself in Ember Yard.

The Beef Bavette dish was also cooked perfectly, the cauliflower puree gave it a deeper flavour whilst the chargrilled spring onions lifts it back up. A great dish but coming after the Presa was always going to be a hard act to follow.

It just kept getting meatier when the next dish came; the Roasted Lamb Leg. If you want to experience perfectly barbecued meat this is the dish to go for. They really understand how to treat each piece of meat they cook.

You would think after all this I would be finished but nope, there's always room for dessert and Ember Yard don't skip a beat on dessert either. I went for the White Chocolate Mousse and wow this was the right choice. Despite it being a Mousse it wasn't at all heavy, the pickled necterines complimented it well and the crunchy honeycomb contrasted with the textures brilliantly, all round a top dessert.

I love having meals here, the atmosphere is great, the food is always on point and the service is excellent, (I took my family here once and they were extremely accommodating of my baby nephew). For me, Ember Yard is one of the gems of the restaurant scene in London.

Lobsters of London

There are only two reasons why I don't eat lobster everyday, I want to buy a house and I don't want to be broke. Basically I love this crustacean, I love how the Chinese cook it with ginger and spring and onion, I love how the Italians pair it with pasta, and the French slathering it in creamy cheese but most of all I love it stuffed in some carbs, particularly a toasted brioche bun. So here is my run down of my top 3 lobster rolls in London.

1) The Daddy- Burger and Lobster

Doughnuts are Brilliant

When I eat a burger I semi-justify it by saying 'this is packed full of protein, perfect for after the gym' whilst conveniently forgetting it's swimming it fat. With the doughnut I find it hard to justify getting one every Friday lunchtime but I've passed caring now and nothing can break my weekly ritual, unless someone makes a scientific discovery that proves doughnuts shorten your lifespan by 50 years...actually I doubt that would even make any difference.

So here's a run down of some of the doughnuts that I've tried in London:

The Daddy- St John Bakery Doughnuts

Dinner at Dinner

I've never eaten at any of Heston's establishments so I, for want of a better phrase was bloody excited to go. I wanted to see if his creations were as amazing as the media made out. Dinner By Heston is based in the Madarin Oriental Hotel in Kinightsbridge overlooking Hyde Park, and it's a stunning location. The interior of the restaurant is inspired by Heston's knowledge of food and the kitchen is opened up to diners using glass walls so you can see the chefs busy at their craft. Pretty much a perfect setting.

Chicken or beef? Next time I go for both.

Its really hard for me to justify going for a chicken option at one of the best burger establishments in London because for all intents and purpose, beef IS better than chicken (what a ridiculous statement...but it's true). Also its hard to accept that you'll be walking out of Patty and Bun not having eaten one of their amazing hamburgers (unless you decide to be an absolutely greedy bastard) but I decided to go for the Chicken burger.

The Street Food Bug

I should really rethink the title of this entry because it sounds like I'm going to be talking about catching food poisoning from street food vendors. Far from it, the London street food scene is amazing, so much choice and most importantly so much quality. Here are my top 5 (in no particular order) street food eats in London.

1. B.O.B.'s Lobster Ahi-Tuna Tacos

These are sooooo addictive. I love the contrasts in flavours and textures. You have the crunchy fried wonton wrapper against the delicate tuna meat and there's some spicy kick in the sauce they use to go with the guacamole and fresh tuna. One of my favourite street snacks.

Where can I find B.O.B?? On the 9th and 10th of May they will be at Dalston Yard at Chilli Chilli Bang Bang

what an awesome looking photo...

Gluttony, thy name is Hawksmoor

Back when I was a teen the thought of chowing down on a bowl of cereal or a piece of toast was enough to make me gag, just wasn't a fan of breakfast. Nowadays there is no way I can function properly without a decent meal in the morning and I certainly have no problem getting up early to grab some grub from one of my favourite restaurants, Hawksmoor.

Hawksmoor's motto, couldn't agree more.

Definately a SIN when it's this good.

I am a huge fan of Vietnamese food, the banh mi is probably my favourite sandwich of all time and pho is one of my top comfort foods so when I heard good things coming from Salvation In Noodles I had to check it out. It did not disappoint.

Crispy Duck Hirata Buns

I flew 6000 miles for this burger.

How can I write a blog about places that I love eat at and not write about my beloved Patty & Bun. I feel in love with the place as soon as I had my first mouthful of Ari Gold (sounds weird but I'll explain later.

Ari Gold, sooooo pretty!

What does the Colonel know??

Meat Lovers Paradise

Steak is the best thing in the world and if you disagree you're a idiot. Ok that's a bit of a extreme first sentence, and obviously it's not the best thing in the world, but it's right up there with sex, Tottenham Hotspur and sunny weather. If you're lucky enough to live near London you have the pick of some really top quality restaurants that serve steak. As mentioned in my previous blogs I'm a huge fan of Hawksmoor, it's one of my go to restaurants, great food and great atmosphere. My friend Chris who writes the excellent www.allthingsmeaty.com and one of the most knowledgeable foodies I know contends that Goodman is a slight step above my beloved Hawksmoor. I obviously couldn't form a opinion without going to Goodman; this was addressed on Monday.

Got that old school charm and Quality

I'm not much of a innovator or a trend setter, I do what most people on Twitter and Instagram do, read or see something good and try it out for themselves. Quality Chop House is another example of me following the trend. I saw some amazing looking plates of food on Instagram and thought 'yes I'm going to have to try that place out'. It was a wise decision.