Aside from Gazette and at a push the Devonshire, you will struggle to find a decent steak in Balham. Until now.
It has filled the slightly awkward boots left by Raviolo - which didn't last very long. When you walk out of Balham station you are greeted with the sight of a large statue of a cow which makes you think you are in Milton Keynes... hardly the centre of the bovine universe.
Cattle Grid is essentially a steak version of the Gourmet Burget Kitchen. No table service. Utilitarian look and feel. Short new world wine list packed with bold reds. You get a choice of steaks - rib eye, sirloin or T bone, supplemented by two variations on piggy ribs or a burger. I admire the fact that the menu is so bare. I hate the way that some restaurants offer a billion options - Starbuck's is currently boasting that they have 80,000 different combinations of coffee. Fuck off and just give me a good espresso. Oh hang on... you can't.
... but I think I'd like to see some different cuts on the menu. Maybe a feather steak, or a hanger steak... or possibly a little bit of rump. Maybe, they'll do this once they've established themselves.
We ordered 2 rib eye steaks - medium rare. One arrived perfectly cooked but the other one was grey through the middle. Possibly we should have sent it back. The chips were good and we were delighted with the watercress salad. My bernaise sauce was a bit stingy - but then again I do regard steak eating as an excuse to eat bernaise sauce!
One of us had a very substantial burger which looked good. But strangely we weren't permitted to request how it was cooked. They insist on serving it medium well which is a bit odd. I love a juicy burger... but a meaty, cloying burger is less fun.
Our bottle of Argie Malbec was good value and was a perfect match for the steak... as it always is. And at well under £20 it was good value.
But the star of the show was without question the onion rings. Soft, sweet onions hid beneath a crisp, light batter. Stunning... if a little bit naughty.
We couldn't resist baked cheese cake which was served with very vanillery ice cream. Tremendous. We were really impressed.
Cattle Grid isn't the finished article. But it is an improvement on Raviolo... and will we're very pleased to have a steak restaurant in Balham. But the key question is... will we go back? I won't actively avoid it... but I reckon the steak is better at Gazette and Bodeans... plus they offer dishes that Cowie would like to tuck into too. So I have a feeling that I will return at some point... but it won't be a regular occurence. If you are going to concentrate just on serving steak... it has to knock your socks off.
6 comments:
So, plenty of good things going for it, but a few duff notes as well. OK, I can see I'm going to have to check it out for myself... Like you say, it will be interesting to see how it 'develops'.
Definitely give it a bash. I am intrigued to hear what you think of it. If it's going to develop and succeed it needs all the help it can get in this jinxed location.
dont eat out next time stay at home eat ur fish and chips maybe u will give it 10 out 10 fool
ps if it that hard to eat out then stay the fuck in so next time STFU
Thanks for your comments anonymous. I love Balham to bits and adore all the restaurants that are springing up. Cattle Grid was good and as you can see in my post and the comment above I am actively encouraging people to visit it.
I really hope Cattle Grid succeeds.
Please don't swear on my blog. And if you do choose to, please don't do it anonymously.
I reviewed Cattle Grid in Windsor last month and was pleasantly surprised.
ANd I like your blog. Glad I found it:-)
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