Bringing the New York steakhouse to London, not the most original brief, but this (Russian-owned) newcomer has a decent stab at bringing Manhattan to Mayfair: dark-wood panelling, inviting leather booths, a bar counter running the length of the restaurant, and staff so chatty and involved in your order they practically sit down to eat with you
If the server did pull up a seat, you wouldn’t be happy to share the excellent steak -be it a 250g fillet, superbly rich and tender, or a less subtle 400g ‘Goodman ribeye’ from the US, rippled with delicious golden fat. We used the chips, thick and salty, to soak up excess juices from the meat; the classic American side dish, creamed spinach, made an excellent further accompaniment, softening the strong flavours.
If a starter of rocket salad with pine nuts and roasted tomatoes was forgettable, it was our fault for ordering boringly; likewise an apple tart for dessert – we wanted to concentrate on the top-quality meat for mains. Is Goodman a bit of NY in London? We’d say pretty close