Review of Macellaio Fitzrovia
I was demolishing 2kg of Rib and T-Bone steak at the new Macellaio RC Fitzrovia, when I heard a dramatic thud. The butcher not more than two metres from where I was sitting, was ferociously cleaving a huge cut of steak.
A new opening
Macellaio RC Fitzrovia has just opened and is Roberto Costa’s fifth butcher themed, meat obsessed restaurant in London. These are stylish restaurants with each restaurant playing on a slightly different theme (like the Butcher’s theatre in Southwark or the Tuna specialty in Exmouth market).
Macellaio Fitzovia is no different, its set around an outdoor courtyard while indoors the theme is butcher meets workshop: the bar stools have pedals, the waiters wear overalls, there’s a pizzeria, ageing meat hanging in the walls and the butcher is cleaving cuts of steak in the middle of the restaurant. This is a place for people who love meat.
Four visits to Macellaio RC Fitzrovia
Over the course of writing this review, I’ve visited the Fitzrovia restaurant four times (in the space of two weeks – all anonymously). I visited for dinner once and for lunch three times (due to their 50% off opening offer, how close they are to the day job, as well as the friendliness of their menu to my carnivore diet).
Over those four visits I shared over 4kg of steak as well as getting through a fair bit of carpaccio (raw sliced beef). This consisted of 3kg of Costata (rib steak) and 1kg of Fiorentina (T-Bone) as well as a rump steak. The rib and T-bone steaks were ordered and served medium-rare while the rump steak was ordered and served rare.
The Macellaio RC Experience
Macellaio RC offers an experience unlike any other steakhouse. After ordering your steak, the butcher prepares it by loudly cleaving the cut of steak in the middle of the restaurant. Once your steak has been cut, the butcher will proudly present you with a rather meaty fruit of his labour.
The waiter will then stab your knives into a wooden block on your table. If you’ve ordered a Costata or a Fiorentina, then it will be dramatically presented. The waiter will countdown to reveal the steak in all its glory, and if you’re lucky enough to get two big steaks, you’ll get two waiters who will clap the chef plates together as they reveal their steaks.
The steak
The presentation of the steak filled me with steak awe. They looked delicious. The crust on the Costata and T-bone was outstanding. It was perfectly seasoned and caramelized and was a great balance to the tender and succulent interior of the steak. In contrast, the Fiorentina was tender, but less succulent than the Costata. In fact, I’ve consistently found the Costata to be the superior cut at Macellaio (despite its cheaper price point).
The steak at Macellaio Fitzrovia was outstanding on all four occasions and better than the steak I had at Macellaio RC Exmouth and Macellaio RC Union St. Yet, funnily enough, it is still the same Fassona breed from Piedmont, Italy (leaner beef that has little marbling) that is aged for 6-8 weeks. So why do I think the steak is better at Macellaio RC Fitzrovia than at the other restaurants? Because they’ve mastered the steak crust.
Red hot meat love
With waiters in overalls, a butcher loudly cleaving large cuts of aged steak, knives being stabbed into wooden blocks and dishes being clanged together to reveal expertly cooked steak; the brand new Macellaio RC Fitzrovia is a theatrical assault on all senses. It also delivers a fantastic tasting steak.
I love Macellaio’s unapologetic in-your-face meat passion. Any steak lover should.
No missed steak
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