Maze Grill, Mayfair
As the launch of David Beckham’s secret London restaurant venture fast approaches, we visited the Beckhams' favourite Gordon Ramsay eatery and sampled Victoria’s all-time favourite dish.
As the launch of David Beckham’s secret London restaurant venture fast approaches, we visited the Beckhams' favourite Gordon Ramsay eatery and sampled Victoria’s all-time favourite dish.
If only every dining experience could be like our recent Wednesday evening visit to Mayfair’s Maze Grill. Love him or loathe him, Gordon Ramsay certainly knows a thing or two about delivering fine dining experiences at democratic prices. Maze totally embodies his mission to simplify top end dining with a menu that is clean, clear and well-priced, taking inspiration from the best New York grill restaurants.
Yes, it offers a fine array of beef; a total of 18 different cuts including a staggering range of breeds, but this is more than a run-of-the-mill steak house, with a dazzling assortment of non-beef dishes from fresh fish and poultry to really good quality sushi.
We kicked off the evening with an excellently mixed Old Fashioned in the bar where the rather dashing manager passionately talked us through his array of home-made strawberry and herb infused vodkas, which sat on huge vats behind the bar. While the service and quality of the drinks was high, the vibe was informal, relaxed, and unpretentious – just what you want for a post-work pre-dinner sharpener (and rare in central Mayfair).
The sushi counter sits in the middle of the bar, so you’re free to order here for a more chilled out meal, but we headed through to Maze (again super informal with a mixture of professional couples and a smattering of families).
We left it to the sushi master to bring us his Chef's Platter (£14 per person). Delicacies included a classic but beautifully presented assortment on ice including sea bass nigiri, the finest salmon sashimi and the two masterpieces – an exquisitely soft yet crunchy Californian roll of snow crab, avocado and cucumber and a stunning portion of salt and Szechuan pepper squid that blew our mind. Delicious just doesn’t do it justice!
When it was time to order the mains, thankfully our waiter arrived at the table with a selection of raw cuts so we could admire the marbling and he talked us through the extensive range. Head Chef Matt Pickop's menu uses the best British ingredients. He changes supplier every two weeks and everything is free range. Make sure you try the smoked olive oil which is served with chunks of homemade bread. Delicious.
Steaks to choose from include sirloin, rib eye, fillet and T-bone (dry aged up to 31 days) and even Gold Style 9th Grade Wagyu imported from Japan. All are cooked on a wood charcoal grill at an incredibly high 600 degrees which ensures perfectly cooked tender meat, with that tasty crispy seared coating.
We plumped for the sumptuous, and perfectly tender American rib eye (£32) with a generous portion of very moreish crispy hand cut chips, plus the sea bream (£17) which came with chargrilled asparagus, confit tomatoes, and Béarnaise sauce (apparently its Mrs. Beckham’s favourite, so it had to be done! The latter, also excellently executed was generously portioned yet light, fresh, bursting with flavour and beautifully presented, notably with the rich creamy sauce on the side.
We finished with chocolate brownie & salt caramel ice (£8). A triumphant combination of rich dark melting gooey pudding balanced by a light creamy slightly salted accompaniment.
We don’t say this often, but with great mixologists, the freshest of ingredients, excellent chefs, impeccable service –and a laid back vibe to love, this place was pretty flawless. In short, a great evening out not bad value either.
Visit www.gordonramsay.com/mazegrill to book.
More Marie Claire restaurant reviews...
Got a tablet? You can now download Marie Claire magazine straight to your iPad, Kindle (just search the store for 'marie claire magazine'), Nook or Google Nexus.
