1. Steak & Lobster
When it comes to steak, simplicity is often best. Following this ethos, Steak & Lobster, Warren Street has just one option: a 10oz dry-aged rib-eye (although you can upgrade to a 16oz if you're feeling extra peckish). It comes oozing with garlic and chive butter, plus unlimited fries and salad. This steak restaurant is the perfect refuelling stop after time exploring the nearby British Museum – other Steak & Lobster London venues include Marble Arch and Heathrow.
2. Goodman, Mayfair
Enjoy prime meat at Goodman’s London steak restaurants in Mayfair, the City and Canary Wharf. The chefs here dry-age the beef on site and select the best from the special ageing room each day, in what they call “The Cut” – whatever makes the cut finds its way onto the menu for the day. Thanks to its raging charcoal ovens, Goodmans’ meat has a smoky flavour that makes it stand out from your average steakhouse.
Where: 24-26 Maddox St, W1S 1QH
3. Boisdale
Cut into a tasty selection of Aberdeen Angus dry-aged steaks at this British restaurant, which has three locations in London: Canary Wharf, Belgravia, and Mayfair. With the likes of flat iron, rib-eye, sirloin and fillet on the bone, tournedos, plus a guest steak, you’ll be spoilt for choice with succulent Scottish-reared meats.
4. Smith & Wollensky
You’ve heard about the cow that jumped over the moon, but how about the steakhouse that jumped over “The Pond”? American favourite Smith & Wollensky has opened its first foreign outpost, just off The Strand, and brings with it USDA Prime steaks that are butchered on site and dry-aged for 28 days. It's also kept its classic sides on the menu, such as hash browns, buttermilk onion rings, and truffled mac ‘n’ cheese.
Where: 1-11 John Adam Street, WC2N 6HT
5. Heliot Steakhouse
Heliot Steakhouse overlooks the floor of Leicester Square’s Hippodrome Casino and serves various cuts of 28-day aged USDA Prime beef. You can add a range of toppings such as roasted bone marrow or wild mushrooms, plus numerous sauces. If you’ve struck it lucky on the casino floor, add a whole lobster side dish. If not, simply get some more chips (of the triple-cooked kind).
Where: Hippodrome Casino, WC2H 7JH
6. Hawksmoor Seven Dials
Fusing elegant 1930s-inspired interiors, classic cocktails and a low-lit ambience, Hawksmoor Seven Dials gives a sense of decorum to the caveman-like art of tucking into a hunk of beef. Thirty-five-day aged beef is the norm here, sourced from London butcher The Ginger Pig's Longhorn, Shorthorn, Aberdeen Angus and Hereford breeds reared on its Yorkshire farm.
Where: 11 Langley St, WC2H 9JG
7. JW Steakhouse
It’s all about bourbon and beef at JW Steakhouse off Park Lane. This American-style restaurant sears its cuts of USDA prime Kansas beef and British Aberdeen Angus in a high temperature broiler to pack in extra flavour. Choose from the likes of a 32oz Tomahawk rib-eye or bone-in Kansas City strip combined with a choice of toppings and sauces. You can wash it down with a pick from the 160 different bourbons in its Bourbon Bar.
Where: JW Marriott Grosvenor House, 86-90 Park Ln, W1K 7TN
8. Flat Iron
Keen to keep things simple, Flat Iron has just one regular main course: its no-nonsense flat iron steak, sprinkled with salt and served on a board, all for just £12. It’s really that simple! However, there are a couple of changing specials at this trendy hangout in spots across the city if you fancy an alternative; plus a range of sides housed in funky retro enamelware to spruce up your table.
9. Gordan Ramsay Bar & Grill, Mayfair
At Gordon Ramsay's New York-style Bar & Grill in Mayfair the beef is aged in Himalayan salt lockers for tenderness and flavour. You'll find native bred beef, rare breeds, plus meat from the USA and Japan, including the much-coveted Wagyu. It's a great option for families, as it has a special "kids eat free" offer when an adult buys a main course (under-8s only).
Where: 10-13 Grosvenor Square, W1K 6JP
10. Santa Maria del Sur
This convivial Argentinean steakhouse in Battersea is a little off the beaten track, but it’s well worth the effort. The menu at Santa Maria del Sur is full of authentic flavours from the South American country, with empanadas, chorizo, and dulce de leche desserts all featuring. But it’s the steak that has made even Gordon Ramsey sit up and take note over the past 10 years – choose from single cuts or go for an authentic “parrillada” (mixed grill).
Where: 129 Queenstown Rd, SW8 3RH
11. The Guinea Grill
The Guinea Grill knows a thing or two about a good steak, having served its grass-fed beef to politicians, film stars and VIPs over the past 60 years. A founding member of the Scotch Beef Club, this traditional Mayfair pub believes British is best when it comes to beef, and relies on Aberdeen Angus from north of the border as well as the finest picks of English cattle. The meat is dry-aged by their trusted family butchers and served to your liking in the cosy dining room.
Where: 30 Bruton Pl, W1J 6NL
12. The Savoy Grill
Set in one of London's most iconic hotels, this elegant restaurant has a host of steak options; each cooked to perfection in the wood charcoal oven. With 1920s decor conjuring up a sense of grill rooms of old and a menu to match, The Savoy Grill is a great option for a special occasion – you may even spot the odd celebrity, as it's hosted the likes of Sir Winston Churchill, Oscar Wilde and Frank Sinatra during its illustrious history.
Where: 100 Strand, WC2R 0EZ
13. 34 Mayfair
This stylish meat-lovers favourite in Mayfair cooks British, USDA Prime and Wagyu beef on a parilla (grill) imported directly from Argentina. Whether you're in the mood for sharing a chateaubriand or a côte de boeuf, or simply want a steak frites or a fillet all to yourself, you can settle down in one of 34 Mayfair's burnt orange banquettes and enjoy your feast as you take in the art deco interiors.
Where: 34 Grosvenor Square, S Audley St, W1K 2HD
14. Gaucho
One of the more high-profile pioneers of Argentinean steak in London, Gaucho now has restaurants across the city; from Canary Wharf to Richmond. At its More London site you’ll be treated to Thames vistas of Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. Choose from popular cuts such as lomo (fillet), ancho (rib-eye), cuadril (rump) and chorizo (sirloin); or experiment with skirt or flank marinated in herbs and spices. If you’re on a tighter budget, there’s a reasonably priced set lunch to sink your teeth into.
