Has American food in London fallen slightly out of fashion? Apparently not it would seem. I thought burgers were old news, ribs were last year and milkshakes were done. Instead it would seem I’ve simply just eaten more of each of those than any other person I know and slightly overdone it. When the big burger boom started in London little over 3 years ago I became obsessed with the stuff – particularly when the first Meat Liquor opened in Marylebone. But still, American style joints are popping up across the capital and an astonishing 250+ restaurants have opened within zone 1-6 this year alone. There’s no sign of it calming down anytime soon either. With all that said Soho’s newest addition comes in the form of Red Dog Saloon on what is becoming the new foodie hotspot, Berwick Street.
I must admit, I’m really shocked just how much berwick street has changed. It’s full of restaurants at the moment, part of it is being pedestrianized and one side of it has even been vacated to make way for a new development. Walking inside Red Dog Saloon one thing you’ll notice is how great it looks. It’s edgy, very cosy, has a great vibe – you feel though not in Soho but down in the deep south of America. Cocktails are also rather epic too. In fact it’s one of this places highlights. We started with a jalapeno and pineapple margarita, on the rocks. It was every bit as fiery as I hoped. Food wise we delved straight in with the appetisers. Gooey, melt in the middle mozzarella sticks with some rather addictive marinara sauce and a small basket of sweet and spicy mustard glazed wings. The sauce to smell is incredibly potent and will burn just about any hairs up your nose, but take a bite and it’s completely different – full of sweetness, a sour edge and depth of flavour. I may just have to come back for the bucked of 50 wings next time – though not alone of course.
And the messiness didn’t stop there. Another cocktail down the hatch, this time a coconut margarita, on the rocks again. It may have looked like a glass of watered down milk but I can tell you it was noticeably not – very well put together and every bit as alcoholic. The cocktails here have attitude, which I love. For our mains we ordered a half slab of the Louis cut ribs. I’m a big fan of ribs, especially when the meat is falling off the bone at every angle. These ribs we’re for me however a little lacking if I’m honest. One side was flaky and tender but the other side was overly meaty and gammon like in texture along with some tough fatty pockets. I’m not sure If it was simply bad luck or the style they’re meant to serve here but I wasn’t a fan. The side of mac’n’cheese was real old-fashioned style, the type your mum used to make at home when you were a child. I liked it, but I didn’t love it either.
And the burger. After me rambling on about them being old news, Red Dog Saloon firmly shut me up for a good few minutes while I devoured this beauty. It wasn’t the best burger I’ve ever eaten – I reserve that for somewhere else but it was a very solid offering. A good patty, cooked medium-rare which was well-seasoned and packed tightly in a shiny glazed bun. Fillings wise they managed to squeeze in their homemade red dog sauce, confit tomato, onion and pickle. Thankfully they also had that sweet mustard sauce which was on our wings in a bottle and found myself drowning my chips in the stuff. If they sold the sauce – I’d snap it up immediately.
We didn’t quite get round to dessert sadly, mainly because the food had defeated us and I was almost rolling out the door – but the brownie looked rather good and so did the milkshakes (add the shot of Bourbon). Red Dog Saloon is a great new addition to Soho and one I’d definitely return back too. The appetisers are good, the burgers delicious and the cocktails are even better. If you’re lazy or simply don’t fancy travelling into Soho with the minus degree temperatures outside – perhaps their Hoxton Square or Clapham North sites will make a visit even more attractive.
7/10
I was invited to review
