Modern British cuisine is influenced by dishes and flavours from across the world. However, we’ve always loved our meat, from our crispy bacon breakfasts to Sunday carvery dinners.
London has its fair share of world-class steakhouses and typically British ‘meat-eries’. But it’s also home to plenty of restaurants that serve some more original meaty refreshments – and we’re going to unveil them.
Vegetarians – avert your eyes, because we’re about to list some of the best meat restaurants in London.
Hotbox
All the flavours of the Americas can be tasted at the Hotbox, an exciting new restaurant that combines your favourite Texan dishes with strong South American influences. Think jumbo prawns with mezcal butter and fermented chilli or fish-glazed chicken wings.
Basit Nasim, the founder of Hotbox, perfected the art of BBQ smoking during trips to Austin, Dallas and Mexico City. If you like your meat seasoned with a cocktail of creative spices, pay a visit to Hotbox.
Smokehouse
Some meat connoisseurs like their cuts to be glazed and seasoned with spices from the far reaches of the globe. Others just want to chow down on a lamb chop grilled to perfection. If simplicity if your style, you should head over to the award-winning Smokehouse, a restaurant that’s earned stellar reviews since opening in 2013.
Everything on the meaty menu is mouth-watering, but we recommend trying the chopped brisket roll covered in gochujang (a tangy Korean-style ketchup) or the lamb shoulder. Looking for the perfect way to end the weekend? You simply must try the Sunday dinner with soft rare beef.
The Pitt Cue Co
Love dining on meat that melts in your mouth? Tom Adams is one of London’s masters of slow-smoked American-style BBQ meats. After running a successful pop-up food store under the Hungerford Bridge, Tom opened a permanent restaurant – The Pitt Cue Co – in the trendy area of Soho.
We highly recommend sinking your teeth into Tom’s signature pulled pork. Alternatively, dig into a beef brisket with a side of coleslaw and crunchy pickles. Fabulously messy. Pleasingly affordable. Indisputably delicious.
Brawn
Calling all pig lovers – Brawn is perhaps London’s best restaurant for those who love pork beyond chops and bacon. Here, you’ll find a variety of diverse and daring delights on the pig-heavy menu, from delicious pork scratchings to genuine brawn (pig’s head). Take your taste buds on a rollercoaster ride by trying grilled duck hearts, snails or sand eels. This is a place for carnivorous discovery.
MEATliquor
We’d be remiss not to give a shout out to a restaurant that caters to the City’s night owl meat eater. At MEATliqour, you’ll find just as many tasty cocktails on the menu as you will American-style meat dishes, such as Philly cheesesteaks, fried chicken and burgers galore.
Need something to take the edge off last night’s session? Try the English Breakfast Martini or the Donkey Punch, a cocktail made from a blend of absinthe, ginger beer and lime juice. For junk food at its best and imaginative alcoholic beverages at any time of the day, heat over to MEATliquor.
If you’re interested in the culinary delights the capital has to offer, make sure to check out our Borough Market and Gin Distillery tour. You’ll have the chance to sample some of the city’s up-and-coming pop-up eateries and learn all about the fascinating history of food and drink in London.
