Following in the footsteps of Hawksmoor and Gaucho, here’s another London based steakhouse mini-chain that’s made its first foray out of the capital and fetched up in the Rainy City. Now, I will readily admit to prejudice about restaurants in basements – they never seem to be as good as they think they are. But I may have to make an exception for Blacklock. Yes, it’s noisy – lots of hard surfaces for sound to bounce off. And it was very busy when we got there at 7.30. That was its busiest time and it quietened fairly quickly but not necessarily the place for a romantic chat with your loved one. And the kitchen had a very heavy hand with the salt on the steaks. But generally food was good and our server was everything you want of a server.
It’s a shortish menu. Four starters and the same for desserts. In between a range of steaks and chops. Crayfish cocktail was just as you’d expect – lettuce, crayfish tails, cocktail sauce. There’s comfort in old favourites even when it’s been poshed up to use crayfish instead of prawns. I was never going to look further than pigs head on toast. Generous portion of piggy, cornichons and a very tangy sauce which I think had a hefty shot of Worcestershire sauce in it.
Sirloin steak for both us. Aged for 55 days and cooked absolutely as requested. Dead tasty. Veg are extras. Chips and slaw for one of us. Baked sweet potato and mixed salad for the other. And béarnaise sauce to share – good béarnaise – lots of tarragon flavour. It all works, apart from the salt issue with the steak.
Dessert wasn’t up to the two savoury courses. We both ordered the apple and rhubarb crumble, although the rhubarb seemed to be missing in action. And the apple was a tad undercooked but the crumble topping was bang-on. As was the accompanying custard.
We’d had a nice evening. It takes us about an hour to get from home to the city centre. We may come back although, frankly, if we’re going to make that schlep I think I might rather go to Hawksmoor.
