A twister of down home American cooking has hit London of late – with people scrambling to find the next great burger van, or rack of ribs with chipotle coleslaw. To give things a contemporary twist, many of the restaurants serving up traditional US
A twister of down home American cooking has hit London of late – with people scrambling to find the next great burger van, or rack of ribs with chipotle coleslaw. To give things a contemporary twist, many of the restaurants serving up traditional US grub are doing so as playful high concept. There’s Bubbledogs for instance, a new restaurant set to open in Fitzrovia offering ten different types of hot dogs – including one with truffle mayo and caramelized lettuce – and accompanied by a carefully curated list of grower champagne.
Two other American classics that have received a lot of attention of late are the hamburger and the lobster roll. From last year’s pop-up Rock Lobsta, dishing out lobster and crayfish rolls at a clothing shop off Brick Lane, to Mayfair’s Burger and Lobster, with a £20 prix fixe menu, whether you order a burger, a full lobster, or a lobster roll. Unfortunately when we visited, the lobster and lobster roll were disappointingly overcooked, which left the burger, albeit good, seemingly overpriced.
Or there’s perennial favourite Hawksmoor, who always straddle the high/low barrier with aplomb, by using the highest quality ingredients to recreate the most basic American-inspired dishes. To our minds, they still make the best lobster roll you’re likely to find in London – gently cooked with a creamy, buttery sauce, and served in a brioche bun – while their bone marrow burger is yet to be matched for taste, texture, and value.
"In our minds, Hawksmoor still make the best lobster roll you’re likely to find in London – gently cooked with a creamy, buttery sauce, and served in a brioche bun"
Some American comfort food places take a more straightforward approach. Lucky Chip do their one thing right, and their perfectly-cooked burgers with inventive names (our favourite is the jalapeno and blue cheese-laden El Chapo), attract long queues to their East London van, and to the Sebright Arms where they’re currently holding a kitchen residency. Similarly, Honest Burger in Brixton Village are never short of eager diners, patiently waiting to get one of their well-seasoned burgers with generous toppings (we loved the smoked cheddar, oak-smoked bacon and onion ring special during our last visit), and rosemary salted chips. And while it’s certainly getting easier to find a good burger in London – a fact celebrated by Young & Foodish’s Burger Mondays – and even a lobster roll here and there, barbeque, the other American favourite of late, is another story altogether. One we’ll be looking at in a future column...
