A great steak from Waitrose.

Double aged on the bone

I know I bang on about never buying steak from supermarkets, but occasionally there’s no other option. Last weekend was one of these occasions. We’d spent the week in Switzerland skiing and arrived back in London on Saturday evening at about 7pm. In time to catch the last 15 minutes of the rugby but sadly too late to pick up meat from the butchers or defrost any from the deep freeze.

Fortunately Waitrose has recently opened on Chiswick High Road so I am no longer forced to go to the sorry excuse for a supermarket that is Sainsbury’s. It’s fair to say that the people behind the meat counter at Sainsbury’s are complete imbeciles and know absolutely nothing about the products they sell. It’s quite shocking that a company can put such incompenent people in charge of selling their wares. What Jamie Oliver is doing associating himself with such an abhorant organisation I do not know.

The people at Waitrose however are very well informed about the products they sell. Not only do they convey a sense of knowledge but they also seem to care about what they do. They are in a different league to their counterparts at Sainsbury’s.

On this occasion the very pleasant butcheress advised me to try the Ribeye, which had been double-aged on the bone for extra flavour. I asked her to cut me a healthy 500g serving which I grilled to perfection for about 6 minutes on each side. The outcome was delicious and as good as most steaks I have eaten recently from various butchers or restaurants.

I stand by my conviction that supermarkets are generally piss-poor alternatives for a decent butcher, but I can safely say that I can exclude Waitrose from the category.

Futuristic steak

Inamo's menu

Last week I had lunch at a place called Inamo – an oriental fusion restaurant on Wardour Street in Soho.

There are no waitresses at Inamo. Instead you place your order via an interactive menu from your table. Using the mouse you navigate through the menu, previewing the dishes, which are projected onto your plate from above. The system also lets you set the mood, order a taxi and if you are really bored you can even play games.

It’s all quite naff really but still a bit of fun.

Steak on a stone

Unsurprisingly I opted for the steak. The ribeye cut was served on a hot stone with three sauces; Nam Jam, Soy & Truffle. The meat was really tasty though I was not a great fan of the sauces.

Verdict: Worth a trip as it’s a fun and quirky dining experience.

Rib-eye round Saggy’s

Saggy

Last week I got a last minute invite from my buddy Sarah (who from this point on will be known as Saggy) to come round hers for a some beef & rocket.

Saggy is a girl who loves her meat. She is also a mean cook. In fact she is starting her own baby food line but that’s confidential info and I cannot talk about it. Saggy also eats like a man. Despite weighing about 60 kilos the girl can eat most men I know under the table. Over the years she’s eaten me under the table on many occasions.

So when I get an invite to come and eat steak round hers I don’t refuse. Good steak and plenty of it.

Last week was no exception. She bought 2 Rib-eyes and 2 rumps both of which she got from M&S. Whilst supermarket steak is usually a no-no, M&S is generally OK. Often I find the meat a little flavourless but the texture is always decent enough. So with a bit of creativity in the kitchen you’ll usually end up contented. Saggy marinaded all the meat in Balsamic vinegar. She used a very good quality Balsamic called Belazu, which always makes a huge difference.

We grilled the meat on her barbecue that she keeps on her balcony. Saggy lives in a swanky riverside apartment in Barnes and technically is not allowed to barbecue outside but fortunately she has understanding neighbours. We grilled on a very high temperature to sear the outside of the meat and then turned it down to cook the inside slowly though.

The result was excellent. She served it with a lovely salad of rocket leaves and cherry tomatoes with a generous amount of great quality Olive Oil and washed it down with some reasonable Rioja.

Verdict: Chez Saggy is as good as any restaurant this side of the Pampas.