Hawksmoor, Spitalfields

I went to Hawksmoor in Spittalfields as part of my birthday celebration. I was really interested in trying this restaurant after hearing my foodie friends at Action Against Hunger speak really highly of it. I was even more interested after I found out they had won several awards for sustainability and ethical animal husbandry. The whole ethos of the restaurant, aside from being a cool hotspot, is to provide only the finest quality ingredients to the diners, and that is exactly what they do.

 For those of you that live in a cave and haven’t heard of Hawksmoor, they were founded by the marvellous Will and Huw, and have expanded their empire to four London locations: Air Street, Sevendials, Spitalfields and Guildhall. We were dining at the Spitalfields restaurant on Commercial Street. From the outside, it doesn’t look like anything special, but as you come through the door you feel as though you have entered into a cool modern day gentlemen’s club.

 Our waitress was incredibly helpful and took us through the different types of steak they had available on the day. The beef is sourced from a farm in North Yorkshire where the cattle graze on open fields and live until they are at least 30 months old. Normally, cattle are slaughtered before 18 months as this is the most profitable practice for the producer. But Hawksmoor don’t have profits as their main focus – they want cattle-rearing to be sustainable, for the environment and the producers, whilst having animal welfare at the forefront of their sourcing. It is also believed that allowing the animal to mature to 30 months helps the meat to have a better flavour and texture.

 As a table, we chose two very large cuts, one Porterhouse and one Chateaubriand. A Porterhouse is part fillet and part sirloin, separated by a T-bone (from the cow’s back basically), whereas a Chateaubriand is the thick part of the fillet muscle and has a very soft texture. Both were served medium-rare and had a strong flavour which I loved, better than any steak I have ever had. Maybe the 30 month maturity thing really makes a difference, who knows. Diners have the option to have their steak with their preferred sauce, but it is recommended to have the steak as it comes in order to experience the full flavour. The waitress also helped us to pair our meal with the correct wine and side dishes. We chose Mac n Cheese, Creamed Spinach, Sprout Tops and Chips. Yes it was my birthday and I insisted on the Mac n Cheese, I’m very glad I did because it was an excellent addition to the meal!  Many other items on the menu are sourced from small producers, from Scottish Salmons to local wines. They even let us take the left-overs home for Archie to enjoy.

 

 Something that also caught my attention was the ‘corkage fee’ - on Mondays customers can bring their own wine for a corkage fee of £5. I think that’s a really lovely touch if you have a special bottle tucked away somewhere. (And a bargain too…).

Although I was very full from the main course, I wasn’t leaving without a pudding. I had the honey comb cheese cake which like the steak, didn’t disappoint. I’m not really a pudding person but let’s just say I didn’t have any difficulty polishing it off. It was less of a cake a more of a giant ball of cream with a swirl of honey comb and biscuit running through it. Very tasty.  I had a great evening and I can’t wait to go back and sample the rest of the menu, especially the highly acclaimed breakfast.

 

Scores for Hawksmoor:

Food: 10/10 !

Ambience: 8/10

Value for money: 8/10 It is expensive but worth it. Take a rich friend… or your dad.

Would I go again: Yes

 

Hawksmoor’s awards:

·         Three star Sunday Times Best Companies 2013 Award, 5th best company in the UK to work for.

·         Maximum 3* rating from the Sustainable Restaurant Association. The Sustainable Restaurant Association (www.thesra.org), a not-for-profit organisation committed to promoting sustainability across the UK’s restaurant industry. Both Hawksmoor and the SRA are committed to
sourcing food ethically, working to improve our environmental impact, treating employees and suppliers well and helping local and national charities wherever possible.

 The SRA said, “Hawksmoor has very strong sourcing practices, ranging from the use of high welfare meat to supporting local breweries and sourcing only the most sustainable seafood. Staff and suppliers are all very positive about the company, its sustainability practices and excellent staff benefits.”