Weekend of Meat Part III: MEATmarket

coo coo...the pigeon's-eye view

Being that Saturday's meat adventure was a bit  of a cheat (albeit delicious, a bit of sausage on a pizza didn't really have that full-on artery-busting effect we were going for) for Sunday's sustenance we headed to MEATmarket in Covent Garden.  A sister restaurant of Meat Liquor, which is shut on Sundays, we decided to try it out as it only opened a few days before.  The restaurant is upstairs in the old-fashioned Jubilee Market in Covent Garden, and the roosting-pigeon's-eye view is good for people watching, and I gather a lot less dark and noisy than Meat Liquor's trendy nu-grunge interior.  Meat Liquor has been the subject of a lot of hype, and I read really great things about their 'Dead Hippie' burger from the excellent Burgerac, so I was excited to try this place out.  They pose themselves as a fast-food version of Meat Liquor, with a more limited menu, a wide counter a la your local kebab shop or McS**t, with stools and high tables which overlook the market.  As I said, you do get a great view over the market, but be warned that view comes at a price - the market has customary wide open entrances all day long, so things get a little chilly in the dining area.



The atmosphere was low key but funky, with illuminated signs over head and giant shelves filled with rows and rows of vividly coloured bottles of French's mustard and tomato ketchup.  On ordering, the first thing that occured to me, apart from the limited menu - I was disappointed they didn't have the renowned chili-cheese fries of Meat Liquor - was the cost.  The 'fast food' atmosphere (complete with chill) and minimalist menu - one milkshake flavour simply named 'white' and cocktails from a Slush Puppy style machine - is evidently ironic, and this 'no nonsense' style clearly doesn't apply to the prices.  The Dead Hippie on its own cost £7.50 but, feeling intrepid and swallowing my inner cheapskate, I went ahead and ordered, adding a fries and coke on the side.

Service was friendly, and fast.  We sucked our bottomless cokes (free refills - a nice authentic American touch) through straws, and a few minutes later our trays of food arrived in funky drive-thru style wrapping.  Still, even before I unwrapped it it looked disappointingly small.

  

 

The Dead Hippie is essentially a cheeseburger, featuring two beef burgers, cheese, lettuce, diced onion and 'dead hippie special sauce'.  When I unwrapped mine it sadly hadn't got any bigger, and as I pulled my scarf around me against the brisk air I again had that nagging feeling that £7.50 was quite a lot for a burger.  Taking a bite I would agree with Burgerac that there is a pleasant beefy taste to the burger, and a LOT of juice that spills out and runs off your chin when you sink your teeth in, very enjoyable.  But it's not really outstanding.  I wanted this burger to make me fall off my stool with flavours but it just didn't.  I commented to Jane it sort of tastes how I imagine a McS**t Big Mac SHOULD taste - if it looked like the pictures above the counter - but I'm not sure if this is really a compliment.  I really liked the fries, which were perfectly salted and stayed crisp (though not warm - again, the chill...) for the entire meal.  Jane ordered the MEATmarket exclusive (all the other burgers are all available at Meat Liquor), the Black Palace burger: double burger with cheese, pickles, grilled onions, ketchup and mustard.  I eyed hers with some envy, it seemed a bit bigger, but I'm not sure if this was due to the fact that it was overflowing with oodles of delicious looking grilled onions - so much so that it kind of disintegrated when she tried to eat it. 

Dead Hippie...tasty, juicy and sadly over in about 2 minutes

I'm glad I tried MEATmarket but I can't help but feel that it's a little over-rated.  I don't think I would have felt this if it was better value for money.  Its position in Jubilee Market is unique, but draughty and I felt like I was paying restaurant prices for a cafe experience and one which is (dare I say it) trading on its quirky hipster following.  In Brighton, I know from the brilliant Grubbs burgers that fast food can be good AND cheap.  I know from the rather lovely Coal Shed (a bit of a Hawksmoor imitator) that burgers can be lovingly presented, and a little more expensive.  Still, my Coal Shed burger the other week cost £9.50, included dripping-cooked chips, its one 250g steak mince beef burger equalling the combined thickness of the two burger Dead Hippie.  In the end I spent £13 at MEATmarket on what was really fast food, very nice fast food, but fast food nonetheless, dressed up with a little dash of irony and punky styling.  The cult of burger doesn't seem to be loosening its grip on London anytime soon, but as a Brighton-to-London interloper I'd say that we've got a few examples down on the South coast that could knock MEATmarket into a cocked (and if necessary, very hip) hat.



All gone...parting is such sweet sorrow. Sniff.



Weekend of Meat Part I: Duke's Brew and Que

This weekend I went up to London to spend the weekend catching up and eating with my lovely friend Jane.  As I've been eating mostly vegetarian for the past fortnight - not for any particular reason, but having once been a vegetarian for about 9 years, I tend to eat meatless meals more often than not - we decided to have a decadent weekend of meat eating.  I really appreciate those years of being a vegetarian, as they taught me to appreciate meat as a bit of a luxury and really enjoy it when I have it.

So, pigs and cows, thank you for providing the deliciousness of our Friday culinary escapade to Duke's Brew and Que in East London.  A cosy and inviting barbeque restaurant/bar adding to the long list of funky American-style meat hangouts in London (eg. Meat Liquor, Bodeans, Pitt Cue, etc) it has a simple menu of ribs, burgers and sliders (sort of mini burgers/meaty sandwiches) with a not-so-simple (in a good way) beer list and lengthy cocktail menu.  A refreshing thing about Duke's is that they take advance bookings.  I have no idea why many of these places have a 'no reservations' policy, the cynic in my says that a hefty queue outside your establishments somehow adds to the legend, status and anticipation.  But to me it's just a massive hassle, a bit of a cheek and leads to leg and brain ache.  Or maybe they want you to get paraletic before you dine.  Jane mentioned that she waited in the queue for almost 2 hours to get into Pitt Cue, getting rapidly drunker from drinks bought at the pub across the road.  Once she got inside she and her companion had a further wait at the bar where more drinks were consumed.  Needless to say, by the time they sat down to eat the food didn't really matter any more.  Anyway, back to Duke's...

Beef ribs and a sunshine-coloured mac n' cheese

THE GOOD:
The meat was really moist but didn't quite fall off the bone quite as softly as Bodean's or Brighton's BBQ Shack.  Still the smokey aroma lingered with me long afterwards (in a good way).  We shared pork ribs and beef ribs, the pork ribs benefitting from a slightly spicy marinade and crispy fat - these probably had the edge flavour-wise for us, but the beef ribs' sheer size and juicyness was irresistably seductive.  Also the bottles of homemade BBQ sauce were excellent, particularly the sublime mustard and horseradish one which we wanted to steal.  The aforementioned cheap beer was also brilliant.  Mac n' cheese had a lovely tangy cheese flavour but for me was a tad dry.  I appreciate this is a matter of opinion though as I like mine unctuous and saucy with a crusty top, whereas Jane likes hers pretty much 'set' all through.  Each to their own!  Also, they brew their own beer at Dukes, and kudos to them for serving it by the pint.  One of my pet gripes at a lot of these new meaty diner-ish haunts is that because they often only serve imported (eg. American) beers it's frequently only sold in over-priced tiny bottles.  With a sigh of relief I found that Dukes' cheapest homebrew sets you back just over £3, and I cheerfully imbibed a pint of their amusingly named 'Neck Oil' out of an old-fashioned glass tankard.  Note to other restaurants - some of us like drink a lot but save money for extra food.  Save the glass and let us have some draft beer, hey?

THE BAD (but not that bad):
Accompanying coleslaw could have been creamier - there didn't seem to be much dressing and it almost ressembled mass-produced stuff.  Also felt that the restaurant is a little chilly and on a (granted, unseasonably) cold early May night we felt a bit of a draft at our window-side table.  The only really bad thing was the pickle on the side - not sure if these were homemade or not but it was bland, watery, more like a cucumber than a lovely crunchy sweet pickle.  This is hopefully a small touch they can improve on.

Pork ribs, disappointing pickle.

Overall I reckon I'd give it an 8/10.  Worth taking the Overground out to East London for and sampling pretty good barbecue and a brilliant beer menu.  And their unisex bathroom with communal tin tub for handwashing and its own piped-in music is also a highlight...