the star attraction at Goodman
My friend, Jane, wanted to celebrate her birthday with a big, juicy steak. So she picked Goodman for a fun group dinner. And guess who was there the night I was there? Krista. It is definitely a small world. If you go to Krista’s post, you’ll see she’s linked to the half dozen other bloggers who’ve already been to Goodman and enjoyed it.
Me? I thought Goodman was a mixed bag and am unlikely to go back. In the interest of full disclosure, despite having been dragged to a lot of steakhouses, I’ve never been a huge fan of the genre, considering them the refuge of people who eat conservatively — you know, the ones who always get the chicken or steak dish when they eat out, but who still want a place where they can spend big money. (And don’t tell me you can get crabcakes or lobster, too – those have generally not turned out that tasty at steakhouses, either).
chicken liver and foie gras pate at Goodman
In any case, as many have noted, Goodman is Russian-owned. And you know, I could tell. The decor in the back room where we were seated isn’t so much American as much as it’s Old-School Library. Looking around, I saw shelves decorated with books and busts and such. And based on my trip to Moscow and St. Petersburg last year, I can tell you that the library look was popular there. The other giveaway would be the pickled herring starter – an anomaly on an otherwise steakhouse-standard list of starters.
Among the four different starters I tried, the chicken liver and foie gras pate was hands-down the best. And I’m not just saying that bc I have a weakness for foie gras. The humble chicken liver loaned its strong meaty flavor to the pate, making me wonder why Goodman had bothered with the foie gras at all (except to justify the £7.50 price tag).
salmon carpaccio at Goodman
The salmon carpaccio was my second-fave starter, though it’d been sliced so thin that the salmon became a mere vehicle for the tomato seeds, passionfruit and salt studded throughout. As for the other starters — the pea and chorizo risotto was mushy and gloppy from over-cooking and over-abundance of cheese, and the caesar salad needed more anchovies for oomph.
NY strip at Goodman
There were several (grass and corn-fed) steaks offered in different sizes and from different countries. Out of nostalgia for the mother country, I chose a New York strip and ordered it medium rare. Sadly, it arrived more medium than medium rare. I still ate the whole thing, though, because the accompanying bearnaise sauce was so good, masking the fact that my steak tasted tough. At £29, my New York strip was one of the cheaper steaks on the menu (with some of the ribeyes costing upwards of £40). And yet, the bottom line is that when you go to a steakhouse and think your steak could have been a lot better, that’s a bad thing.
At least the creamed spinach was lovely (it’s hard to go wrong with a bowl full of cream and butter) — the best of the side dishes. Goodman’s chips were fine, as were the mashed potatoes. But I think creamed spinach is always the way to go in a steakhouse.
cinnamon-apple tart a la mode
Desserts were of the homey cheesecake-chocolate cake variety. A cinnamon-apple tart, while a bit soggy in the crust, was the most appealing of the three or four we tried. Not a surprise given that hot apple, cinnamon and vanilla ice cream are a tough-to-beat flavor combo.
strawberry sundae
The sundae, on the other hand, was mostly whipped cream and bits of pound cake, whereas I’d hoped for tons of vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. Oh well. This isn’t America, after all.
With Goodman’s steaks costing £30-50, starters £8, sides £4 and desserts £6, it’s easy to see how the tab adds up fast. The service was friendly and responsive, but our meal with a modest amount of wine per person came to £85 each. At those prices, I long for the days of all-about-the meat places like Ray’s the Steaks in Washington, DC, and I’m unlikely to return to Goodman anytime soon. Unless I’m craving creamed spinach.
Goodman, 26 Maddox Street, W1S 1QH; 0207 499 3776; closest tube station: Oxford Circus
Thanks for an interesting review. I agree with you about the rare/medium rare issue. What Cromwellian streak is there in this country that prevents kitchens cooking steaks as “rare” as the customer wants them? I had the same problem at Browns (strangely enough in Maddox Street, too). They refused to cook a steak “rare”- suspect in their case it was because- how can I put this?- the meat they use “couldn’t take it”.
Looking forward to trying out Goodmans, though.
Best wishes
The Greasy Spoon
Wow. Now that’s pricey. Yeah, I think I’ll continue cooking my steaks at home, thanks.
I only went when it opened and there was an FT offer to take advantage of, so lunch was cheap and I didn’t have an expensive cut. But I love steak and would probably go back one day if I can fit it in between all my travel plans! Interesting to note the popular ‘library look’…
Thanks to you and to The Greasy Spoon for calling attention to the blurring shades of difference between rare and medium rare. Perhaps my burger doneness colour strip – http://youngandfoodish.com/meats/my-burger-doneness-color-strip/ – can be handed out when ordering steaks, too.
Greasy Spoon – just to clarify, I ordered a medium rare steak and was served a medium (almost well-done) one instead. But I get your point and hadn’t noticed the more-cooked-than-you’d-like steak to be a trend in the UK. [Probably bc I rarely order steak in restaurants.] As for Cromwellian legacies . . . the US has its own legacy to live down via the Puritans (who, it must be said, are like Cromwellians on crack).
Su-Lin – I’m with you. In my opinion, I cook delish steaks at home, and if I want frites with it, I just pop over to a nearby McD’s. : )
Helen – When the birthday girl told me we were going to Goodman, I remember reading your review, and I have to say that at the lunch deal price, I’d like Goodman, too. However, at £85 for an over-cooked steak, Goodman has clearly “blown” their chance to get my repeat business.
And I’m glad to hear you have fun trips coming up and am looking forward to reading what you find in Japan. I love having travels to look forward to, which is why (despite the hassles and expense of travel) I am often out of town. I’m dreading the moment when travel gets old, but as long as it’s for holiday, I’m still loving it.
I have absolutely no qualms in sending the steaks right back to where they came from if it was over-cooked. Why request how I want my steak cooked if you won’t listen to me? And if I specifically asked for it to be done this way and it’s not delivered, I deserve a new one. I think this is really poor of Goodman to do this; If I can manage to cook myself a medium-rare steak at home, they should be able to too.
I went to the new Gaucho on Charlotte Street for lunch and they steak was really good – cooked perfectly too. I know some people haven’t got a high opinion of the chain but I was impressed.
More often than not, medium rare does sadly become medium in the UK. I suspect it may have something to do with the ‘conservative’ clientele you mention in your post. I don’t visit the US frequently but I’ve also had medium rare turn medium in Vegas although it may just have been bad luck.
Lizzie – you raise a good point about sending back food, and I know this is going to sound silly, but bc of the way I eat steak (i.e., from the outside in), I was 1/3 through before I realized the steak wasn’t going to get any rarer. And in the end, the prospect of waiting for a new steak while my eight friends finished their meals was not appealing. That said, you’re right that if the steak’s not the way you want it, it should be sent back (especially at such high prices). As for Gaucho, I’ve only ever been to the Canary Wharf location, which has always been unimpressive except for the waterside location.
Mr. Noodles – I don’t think steakhouse fans are conservative (socially or politically). Just that they may not be adventurous eaters, wherever in the world the steakhouse is. And I’ve never been to Vegas, but I have the sense that it’s a world unto itself.
Hi AinL, sorry for any confusion but I actually meant conservative clientele to equate to unadventurous boring eaters ! Having said that I’m sure George W likes his steak and that he would have found foreign trips to be a real pain if he had to eat too much local food ! I like Gaucho too but that’s as much to do with their ceviche starter as their steaks.
Oh, I’ve heard so much about this place. Interesting that it wasn’t as good an experience for you. Shave they didn’t cook the steak right, you should have sent it back.
That is a sorry-lookin’ steak (at least, for that price…maybe if it was at a Sizzler or something).
With a bit of practice, it’s not that difficult to cook a steak evenly throughout, so that each bite is cooked to precisely the same doneness…which, to be fair, is apparently what they did (albeit to the wrong level of doneness). If you’re at a high-falutin’ steakhouse and the first bite isn’t cooked the way you want it, it may be time to call over a waiter.
Yeah, I eat a lot of steak.
Finally, the Puritans were a crazy bunch, and left behind a legacy of serious uptightedness (blue laws, anyone…also, it’s not a liquor store, no no, it’s a “package store”), but hey, at least they didn’t rape and pillage their way through Ireland. So they’ve got that going for them…which is, if not nice, at least something, right? (Upon reflection, Native Americans probably shouldn’t answer that question…)
“With a bit of practice, it’s not that difficult to cook a steak evenly throughout, so that each bite is cooked to precisely the same doneness.”
Good to know. Clearly when I cook a steak, the center is more rare than the edges, so I was (as you say) a little too easy on the steakhouse in supposing that when I got to the middle, it would be more the way I wanted it (medium rare).
I like that you’re sticking up for the Puritans using such a high standard (i.e., they didn’t rape and pillage). lol. I suppose you have a point when you consider how the Spanish used Catholicism to subjugate/keep subjugated much of Central and South America.
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