Hawksmoor Turns 20: The £45 Classics Menu Day and How to Book
Twenty years ago Hawksmoor opened its first restaurant in Spitalfields and quietly changed how London thinks about steak. To mark the birthday, the group is doing something steak lovers will not want to miss: for one day only, Monday 29 June, its anniversary Classics Menu drops from £75 to £45 at all of its London restaurants, as Hot Dinners reported this morning. That includes our local branch on Yeoman's Row, just off Brompton Road.
How the booking works
This is not a walk-in deal, and timing matters. Bookings open on the morning of Friday 19 June, tomorrow, and the invitation goes to Hawksmoor's newsletter list. To receive it you need to be signed up to the newsletter by the end of that day, so if you are not already on the list, do it today through the Hawksmoor website. Tables for a one-day offer like this are likely to go quickly, so have a preferred time and a backup ready.
What is on the Classics Menu
The menu revisits the dishes that built Hawksmoor's reputation. Among those named so far:
- Old Spot belly ribs, the smoky, sticky starter regulars order on autopilot.
- Potted beef and bacon with Yorkshire puddings.
- Dry-aged Longhorn ribeye, the centrepiece.
- Sticky toffee pudding and salted caramel Rolos to finish.
At £45 for the lot, it is a rare chance to eat the greatest hits for considerably less than the usual anniversary price.
Why the Knightsbridge branch is the one to book
Hawksmoor Knightsbridge is one of the group's most atmospheric rooms: a basement on Yeoman's Row with Art Deco interiors, marble, brass and dark leather banquettes. The house suggestion is to begin at the bar with a martini and fried oysters, and on an occasion like this it is hard to argue. On weekdays the restaurant opens in the evening only, so this is a dinner booking rather than a long lunch.
If you miss out on 29 June, the branch remains good value by Knightsbridge standards. It runs an evening set menu every day from 5pm, and it is the only Hawksmoor to offer an evening set menu seven days a week. Its Sunday roast, with slow-roast rump or thick sirloin carved with all the trimmings and a Winslade Wellington for vegetarians, comes from a group that has twice won the title of best Sunday roast in the UK.
Twenty years in numbers
Since that first Spitalfields dining room, Hawksmoor has opened seven more restaurants across London, as well as sites elsewhere in the UK and abroad. Knightsbridge arrived later, taking over a former bar and grill site on Yeoman's Row, and it has become the group's natural address for Harrods shoppers and South Kensington museum-goers looking for a proper dinner.
Getting there
Hawksmoor Knightsbridge is at 3 Yeoman's Row, SW3 2AL, a few minutes' walk from Knightsbridge and South Kensington stations and a short stroll from Harrods. For more steak and supper ideas nearby, browse our restaurant guide.
Lead image: Loco Steve via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
