Eat Here: The Coal Shed, Tower BridgeBy Alicia Grimshaw
You may have been to The Coal Shed in Brighton, or read about it – but if you haven’t, it’s really a special restaurant and we urge you all to visit. We stopped by in the summer and were taken aback by the meat quality, the oh-so-quaint dining room with dark wood features and twee lighting. So when the team decided to launch their sister site in the Big Smoke, we were there quicker than we could top up our Oyster card. A celebration of meat, fish and fire – we stopped by The Coal Shed recently, and it was everything we wanted and then some. Here’s what you need to know:
The Coal Shed: The Lowdown
Unlike the smaller site on the coast, The Coal Shed located near Tower Bridge is a more theatrical affair. There’s a open kitchen, a separate swanky cocktail bar with seating, and large windows which bathe the restaurant in natural light. A chalkboard with steaks of different cuts is in full view, and feature a range of different weights which are ideal for sharing between two hungry carnivores.
The Coal Shed: The Food
We’re usually a three course, go hard or go home type diner – but we wanted to save space for all the meat, so on this occasion we just headed straight into the main event. The menu is peppered with various cuts of steak, and we chose the rib eye (served medium rare), and the fillet (served rare). Both steaks were cooked to perfection, and the flavours were next level; the beef was rich, succulent and utterly tender. So much so, that we didn’t need to use our steak knife.
The sides. Man, the sides. This is where we went to town on the menu. The creamed spinach with three cheeses was a hot, cheesy mouthful of happiness. And the coal-roasted carrots were wonderfully moreish. Try the onion rings and triple-cooked chips for a deep-fried fest, and you know what, we could’ve order another portion of onion rings again because they were absurdly delicious.
But the carnival of flavours didn’t stop there. Next stop on our foodie tour: dessert. The dessert menu put together by superstar Laura Petersen, former head pastry chef at The Salt Rooms in Brighton, read like our final death row requests. There’s custard tart pimped up with pumpkin and nutmeg, and baked Alaska with brown butter and curaçao. It was the chocolate bar, an adult version of the classic Aero that made our tastebuds sing. The chocolate bar was filled with an agonisingly gorgeous medley of praline and chocolate, finished with homemade Aero pieces, praline mousse, and a quenelle of ice cream. A decadent and sweet masterpiece.
There’s also a sweet menu featuring all kinds of seaside greats like 99p ice cream and candy floss. If you’re after a chocolate bite with your coffee, the chocolate coal served on a bed of chocolate soil were rich bite-sized truffles that we soon scoffed back.
The Coal Shed: The Verdict
The staff were helpful and attentive without being intrusive; they guided us with our wine choices, and gave solid advice when we couldn’t decide on dessert (thanks for making us try the chocolate bar). The meat quality, the chilled atmosphere, and the vast selection of global wines makes The Coal Shed a foodie haven. There’s a whole lot of style here as well as a great deal of substance, and we can’t wait to see what the restaurant does next.
