It’s rare, nowadays, that the bill comes at the end of a meal and you are pleasantly surprised by the figure inside.
Besieged by labour shortages, high energy costs and supply issues the hospitality sector has been on the frontline of Britain’s battle with inflation, making it increasingly prohibitive to eat out.
But there are some chains that have bucked the trend.
Founded in Shoreditch in 2012, Charlie Carroll set out with a simple mission statement for his new restaurant venture: to make remarkable steak accessible to all.
Working his way through a list of 38 different beef suppliers, he struck a relationship with a third-generation, native-herd farmer Charles Ashbridge from Yorkshire, and hasn’t looked back since.
Today, Flat Iron boasts 12 locations across London and one in Cambridge, and its reputation continues to grow.
And for good reason. It’s ace. And at £13 a steak, it’s really changing perceptions of how to serve good steak at a good price.
Steak is one of those peculiarities. It doesn’t matter what cut you eat, it always carries a certain prestige.
It’s a bit like cigars or champagne. You could be smoking a cheap Havana or a Cohiba Behike, drinking Lansons or Dom Perignon, and still be tingled by the same hedonistic giddyness all the same.
And so it is for flat iron.
Taken from the chuck shoulder, flat iron is not a super expensive steak, but it has the quality of one nonetheless.
During his research, Carroll discovered that little-known secondary cuts from the very best beef were still exceptionally tasty and, just as importantly, reasonably affordable – if you do it well.
Hence the flagship Flat Iron steak still sells for just £13 and is presented much like you’d expect to see a rib eye in a top-end restaurant.
While much is said about Hawksmoor, Gaucho, Goodman or Blacklock, Flat Iron has also started to find itself on lists of the best places to eat steak in London – and is probably half as expensive.
Flat Iron is often considered a cut above the rest because they butcher all their meat on-site from carcasses sourced from their own heard in North Yorkshire.
We discovered on a recent butchery demo held in their ‘Butcher’s Office’ on Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, that the key to their perfect steaks is actually simplicity.
Good quality meat actually needs little embellishment, so they ditch the fancy seasonings and just grab a handful of quality salt to allow the natural flavours to shine through, which they invariably do.
Served alongside steak is another key component; good chips.
Cooked in beef dripping the Flat Iron chips have a crunchy outer layer that gives way to a fluffy texture in the middle.
Other treats such as bone marrow mash (£4), truffled macaroni cheese (£5.50) and roast aubergine with basil and mozzarella (£4.50) also showcase how simple can be both inexpensive and delightfully tasty.
I generally take a moment to have a drink at the bar too before getting hurried to the table.
As is generally the way with low-cost table served meals, the staff are often keen to turn the table around, so don’t rush to it would be my advice.
A good cocktail menu at a set £8 price will free up a bit of time as you flip from a classic old fashioned to a passion fruit collins.
An own-brand malbec comes to the table for under £30, and tends to complement the meal pretty well.
