Review: Tramshed

Chicken or steak?

No really, the website is chickenandsteak.co.uk. If you're still confused as to what food they serve here, then I'm afraid I can't help you. To be fair, for a place that is renowned for chicken and steak, I'm impressed they had a pescatarian and vegetarian section, when some places don't bother. Mark Hix really knows how to sell to people.

The famous Cow and Chicken sculpture. You can't miss it.

Firstly, I have to say the staff are brilliant. On a Friday night in Shoreditch, My Diner Friend (MDF) and I rock up unannounced around about 9pm. Tramshed has been on my hit list for a very long time and I thought I would try my luck. As luck would have it, 2 people were just leaving the bar which we were more than happy to sit by and eat. The waitress suggested we go for a drink nearby and come back in 10 mins while they clear up...15 or so minutes later, we arrive back...to be told that we've been given a table instead. That isn't luck, that's just very good service.

So, we already started off on the right foot, and the rest of the time we were there, we were not disappointed. We started off with the Cock 'n' Bull croquettes (meat and potato) which were divine, we both said we could have just had that as main course, we also tried the Moons Green Beer Stix of meat - turns out it's a bit like Pepperami...only a lot more gourmet style.

The 'Stix'...interesting

Meat or chicken is the next big question - we went for the rib on the bone (rib-eye) to share amongst two (I'm a big fan of the fat). Note - if ordering the chicken, it comes with feet attached - for someone who comes from a Chinese/Asian background, this is no biggie, but if you're squeamish then...deal with it. Rare to medium is how the steak is cooked. This also takes 40minutes, I must admit, I did get a bit impatient waiting but that's only because the people around us ordered separate meals and not a great big chunk of meat, so they came and went, and the staff were great in explaining that meat must not be rushed (I should have known this). Waiting was worth it however, the waiter will be more than happy to cut your meat up for you. We had this with chips and a side of broccoli. The meat was exquisite; it worked pretty well, as I went for the fattier cuts of meat and MDF went for the lean steak. We took the meat directly on the bone home however. The chips were decent, however the bowl it came in was a bit oily and the broccoli was still crunchy (which is how I like it).

We were then too full for dessert, but I kept on dreaming about the meat. It looked and smelled fantastic, it tasted even better. It was cooked to perfection and you can tell it was just a great quality of beef. It may just be the best steak I've ever had.

THE MEAT - it may have been bigger than my head

It's quite pricey, of course it is, but for quality steak then you would have to expect to pay a bit more than your average meal. It's a great place to come with a groups of friends as the sharing plates on offer are great value for money.

Drinks on offer are great. The atmosphere is fun but serious about meat, everyone seems to be on the same wavelength in that they want quality, whether it be service, food or price. By the time it reached midnight, I was disappointed to be leaving, in all honesty I could have sat there for longer and smelt more meat go by.

If you are vegetarian or a bit squeamish about meat, then this place probably isn't ideal, but I would definitely come back here again.

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 (I'm a mean critic)

There's even a nod to the cartoon, Cow and Chicken on the wall, which I thought was a great touch.

TRAMSHED REVISITED - August 2015
I went for the chicken to share...mainly because it came with feet attached. The chicken was served comically and was cooked perfectly, if a little too much for two people, but I managed to force it down anyway. I was a bit disappointed with the skin (my favourite bit) as it was way too salty, but I guess that was for the benefit of having crispy skin. The gravy however, was on point. Delish once again!