One of London’s most talked about new places
to eat has credited the Scotch beef it serves for helping win rave
reviews.
Michelin-starred chefs and top food critics
have been some of the first to book a table at The Devonshire, tucked away in
central London behind Piccadilly Circus.
Charlie Carroll, founder of the well-known
Flat Iron steak restaurants, is behind the Soho venture with business partner
Oisin Rogers.
“We’ve only just opened, at the end of
November,” says Charlie, whose team cooks the meat on a unique wood ember
grill; the first of its kind in the country. “It is very rewarding to be on the
radar straight away after opening. We’ve had a lot of industry interest, with
three Michelin starred chefs in one week for Sunday lunch.”
Critics have been quick to book a table, with
stellar write-ups from highly influential reviewers like Giles Coren who wrote
in The Times:
“What a place. What. A. Place.” Adding: “It’s just insane what the team is
doing here.”
Co-founder is ex-Fat Duck and Dinner by
Heston executive chef Ashley Palmer-Watts. George Donnelly is head butcher and
a key member of the crew, storing the meat in an on-site ageing chamber.
Charlie buys the beef from AK Stoddart’s, in
Scotland, where he has visited farms and seen the entire process from field
through to the abattoir.
“The truly exceptional taste of the beef
comes from a combination of things including the farmers’ husbandry, the
climate and the grass. It is no exaggeration to say the Scotch Beef we are
serving stands toe-to-toe with the finest from anywhere in the world.”
Most of the beef served is Aberdeen Angus,
with the inspiration for the open grill cooking coming from Old England.
“Characters like Henry VIII didn’t eat their
meat from an oven – it came off the roast, bringing out the traditional taste,”
explains Charlie, who adds that he has visited lots of abattoirs over the years
but finds “something rather special” with the way the process is dealt with at
AK Stoddart’s.
Supplying top restaurants around the globe is
nothing new to the beef supplier’s managing director Grant Moir, who regularly
ships Scotch Beef out to places including Japan, the Far East and Europe.
“What is satisfying is the relationship with
Charlie, who understands the whole supply chain and works with us in a
long-term collaborative way,” says Grant, who has been in the meat industry for
30 years.
“He understands and appreciates that our
butchers know the quality specification of meat he is looking for.
“It’s this way of working that more farmers
are starting to understand, and I very much want to encourage. They realise
what people at the top of their game, like Charlie at The Devonshire, are after
in terms of fat coverage and marbling and put the effort into producing it.
It’s great when you get that three-way relationship going between us, the
farmers and places like The Devonshire.”
Two neighbouring farmers, Jim Fowlie and
Gavin Ross, from Strichen in Aberdeenshire, are among those whose Aberdeen
Angus cattle have ended up on The Devonshire’s in-demand plates.
Jim, who farms around 2,000 acres, says “it’s
a real feather in the cap” to hear about the acclaim The Devonshire is
receiving.
“We’re in the cold shoulder of Scotland and
there is a lot of hard work goes into rearing the cattle, especially in winter,
so it’s great to have the effort we put in recognised in all these reviews. If
ever I get down to London I will certainly go in and try one of their
steaks.”
Gavin Ross, who farms cattle, sheep and
cereals (used to feed the animals) alongside his father Allan, son Stuart and
wife Lindsey, says he too would like to sample The Devonshire’s traditional way
of cooking meat.
“It’s great to hear of Scotch Beef where it
belongs, in the finest restaurants,” says Gavin.
“It means a lot to us to hear that people all
the way down in London are enjoying the meat we produce. We are all working
hard and trying to tick all the boxes, looking at things like carbon footprint,
so it makes it all worthwhile when people are saying the end
product tastes good. Scotland’s leading the field when it comes to providing
the customer with consistently premium quality meat.”
Commenting on the Devonshire, Sarah Millar,
CEO of Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) concludes: “This is such a wonderful example
of the farm to high-end tables that Scotch Beef, as a brand and a product, can
achieve. The team at Stoddart’s has invested great care in ensuring that the
meat supplied to Charlie, and his team, is consistently of exceptional quality
with a fantastic associated story of dedicated farmers producing livestock to
the highest of standards, from the landscapes of Scotland.”