Saturday 2 February 2013

Meat Mission: Meat Liquor, but fun

I have been following the MEAT franchise since the days of New Cross Gate. Many an hour I have whiled away standing on the streets of South East London, then later in behind Oxford Street. And yet, while I used to be a devout follower (it is incredible how the Meat brand attracts an almost religious fervour), I was left feeling empty by my last trip to Meat Liquor. The music was too loud - when Metallica invades your personal space to such an extent that you feel you are sitting inside one of Lars Ulrich's bass drums, something is wrong. The service brusque. And worst of all, the food was a major let down. Overcooked burgers and a terrible Philly cheese steak roll. This was not the #MeatEasy I had fallen for.

So, when they opened their next venture, Meat Market, I let it pass me by. But then came a third, Meat Mission, and the feeling returned. I remembered the good times, and I decided it was worth one final shot.

Once a great place for a beer, but barren for food, the restaurant scene in Shoreditch has had somewhat of a resurgence in recent years.  First came the big boys (Busaba Eatthai, Byron), then more recently Brindisa opened its latest outpost, Tramontana.  Now the MEAT guys have moved on.

Set off the main drag, MEAT Mission is a cavernous place - only half of it was open on the evening we were there. And, ironically enough, you can book. No more queuing for me. The atmosphere is everything MEAT Liquor is not - friendly, welcoming, egalitarian. I felt comfortable once again.



The menu is similar to the other outposts - I went for the Dead Hippie, the original MEAT burger combo. Rare, sloppy, delicious - this was a return to form.  Back up there with the Lucky Chips of this world - a proper dirty burger. The Fashionista had the cheeseburger which was equally good.


Alongside the burgers, we got some of their Monkey Fingers - battered chicken with a hot pepper sauce and blue cheese dip. These have been getting rave reviews - but I was left nonplussed. They reminded me of the kind of soggy sweet and sour chicken people seemed happy to devour growing up in Scotland in the 90s.  That said, the blue cheese dip was some finger lickin' stuff.


MEAT Mission has restored my belief in what the MEAT guys are doing. Proper dirty burgers up there with the best of them. But I think I will stick East to get my MEAT fix, maybe I am getting old, but MEAT Mission is just so much nicer. MEAT Liquor feels like a teenager trying to be something, MEAT Mission has got through the angst and knows what life's about.


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1 comment:

  1. Why not try making the dead hippie feast for yourself! dotrytheseathome.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete

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