Bread Street Kitchen by Gordon Ramsay, London

Gordon Ramsay’s Bread St. Kitchen in One New Change takes the honour of my first Rib Eye steak review. Slap bang in the middle of the city, in the same building as Jamie Oliver’s Barbecoa, I had high hopes for this highly-reviewed restaurant. I found a brilliantly cooked, but mainly flavourless steak, and slightly strange service…

[rating meta_key=”cooking”]

I ordered medium-rare, and that’s exactly what I got, with a nice charring on the outside. Gordon Ramsay advertises this place has a Josper Grill, and it shows. Not only was the steak perfectly cooked on the inside, it was beautifully charred on the outside. The texture was great

[rating meta_key=”flavour”]

Given the exceptional cooking, I was expecting great things from the taste. Alas, it wasn’t to be. Despite having a brilliant texture, great marbling, and being cooked perfectly, the meat was just bland. I suspect I just got a bad cut, but the flavour really let it down.

[rating meta_key=”fries”]

These are roast potatoes, not chips or fries. They’d be perfect with a joint of beef, but not what I want on the side of my plate with a nice Rib Eye steak.

[rating meta_key=”service”]

From the host to the waitress to the second waiter, the service just wasn’t quite right. Nobody seemed particularly happy, and the waitress was so short it was borderline rude. Additionally, the manager came over and asked “how is everything?” just as I put a big heap of meat in my mouth – I presume he timed this so he didn’t have to bother to engage in conversation. The second waiter (no handover was given) seemed slightly more cheerful.

[rating meta_key=”decor”]

I like the decor. It’s trying hard to be cool and slightly industrial, but struck the balance just right. I guess they are banking on City folks liking a change from their offices, and it kind of works. Some chairs are metal, some are comfy. Mine was metal and wasn’t exactly the type of thing you’d want to sit on for hours (that’s probably the idea).

[rating meta_key=”value”]

Less than £100 all in for two including service, although that only included soft drinks.

[rating meta_key=”other”]

The bread and butter brought round at the start was delicious, although no match for Gaucho’s cheesy balls, obviously.

[rating meta_key=”overall”]

This place has so much potential. Right by St. Pauls, a great kitchen, but was let down by the flavourless meat (I’m willing to bet it was a one-off), roast potato chips and unfriendly service. Sort that out, and it’ll be a winner. The chef knows how to cook a piece of meat, and there’s a lot to be said for that. That said, this place is in the same building as Jamie Oliver’s great Barbecoa restaurant.