There is a notion that if you own or work in a sweet shop, the appeal of eating sweets soon wears off. Likewise, it is often the case that the last thing the publican wants as he or she rings the bell for last orders (do they still do that?) is a crafty pint. This all came to mind one evening last week as I sat down to a very delicious, medium-rare, Rib Eye Steak. I never tire of a well cooked steak. To be honest, I never tire of meat. Of course, like most people, I keep one eye on my health. I don’t eat meat every day, but when I do, I have the finest meat at my fingertips. Rather than eating under sufferance, I count my blessings every time for the ‘perk of my job’. At the end of a long day, on my way home, I am quite likely to enjoy the publican’s pint, and pick up a little chocolate from the sweetshop, before settling down to a steak from the grill, with chips and coleslaw, and usually a large glass of wine. A treat every time.
The steak section in ‘Meat London-the Book’ goes into detail as to what to expect from each steak, how to cook steak and what are good accompaniments. It explains my theory of how it takes eight minutes to cook a steak, and there is even a method of how to get a bowl of steaming chips in 30 minutes. Our book is on sale in each of the shops and can be ordered through Waterstones or Amazon.
A quick mention for Holly Wilson (who?). Holly is our neighbour and friend, the owner of Prep Cookshop, 106 Stoke Newington Church Street. Like so many shops on Church Street, Prep is a delightful, small independent business and brings a plethora of everything beautiful and useful for dining at home. Holly took it upon herself, via social media, to highlight the pressure being put on small businesses at this time by constant financial increases, including the latest rise in business rates. More than anything, the message was to remind locals to remember what they have on their doorstep, and to continue to ‘Shop Local’. I was interested to read the immediate response in the comments section, where residents were quick to back local businesses, and assure their support. This is completely typical of our every day experience of local customers. At each of the three Meat London shops, we have enjoyed fantastic local support and enthusiasm, and we will continue to do what we can to mitigate the constant burdens brought upon us and maintain the quality and standards that we want to deliver. Thanks to all loyal Meat London customers. Onwards and upwards!
We consider every youngster who takes part in our Easter painting competition a winner, just for entering, and 2025 has not disappointed us. From the beginning of April, the pictures started to arrive, and the walls and windows of our Meat London shops started to fill up. 200 entrants is a conservative guess. I don’t think any of us counted them all. Then, on Easter Saturday, our delightful, independent judges turned up to pick winners and runners-up. Goodness knows how they decided but they did. As ever, thank you to the judges, thanks for the enthusiasm shown by our customers, but, of course, let’s save a huge ‘Thank You’ to the wonderful Meat London kids for such an amazing effort.
Happy to report that we have got Herb Fed Chickens back in the shops. The chickens from Herb Fed farm were a real joy when we discovered them three or four years back. Unfortunately, Herb Fed ran into production issues, and I chose not to sell them for a while. Not willing to be put off so easily, the lovely people at Herb Fed have worked hard to improve their production and returned with an even better offer. The best way to find out about their delicious eating quality, is to reserve one for Sunday lunch. Please pop-in or call the shops and enjoy a very good chicken.
Lamb since Christmas has been of exceptional quality. By default, most of the lamb we are selling at this time has reached the ‘Hogget’ stage, meaning it is about a year old, and will be a little darker in colour and, in my opinion, a little more fulsome in flavour. It is definitely my favourite time to be eating lamb. I’m also happy to report that, generally, the price stabilised through the last few weeks, and we all enjoyed a very good Easter.
I fully expect that New Season Lambs will come to the fore during May and will offer something different. It’s always a fun time for the meat industry and comes at a time when we start to see Spring vegetables, vibrant herbs and early Summer fruits. I’ll write more when I know NS lambs will be in the shops. Keep watching
