Meat centric teetotallers (to reiterate, the main thing that really separates this from any other kind of smokehouse is the substitution of bourbon and craft beers for cream soda and milkshakes). Anyone who used being teetotal as an excuse to do other unhealthy things :3 

 

People who like the idea of American diner style eating mashed up with a more ‘contemporary’ smokehouse approach. Anyone who ever took the idea of a ‘cheat day’ deadly seriously (and you know who you are…). People with powerful digestive systems, superior digestive enzymes, and the capacity to eat things and combinations of things that’ll put you through your paces… 

 

Anyone who ever wanted to get deep fried Oreo doughnuts in England 

So…I finally get to go to Meat & Shake, and I am quite glad that I do. There is quite a lot more to them than I expect there to be, and they certainly deliver on the promise of MEAT and SHAKE (one after another – shake first, obviously…). In a nutshell: it’s a casual, American style diner/smokehouse (and ‘smokehouse’ is certainly a category now!).

 

The first opened back in August 2013, in Tooting – I had already heard tales of its popularity and some good things from people who’ve visited (i.e near continual lines stretching outside the restaurant, and something they serve called ‘dirty fries’, usually referred to in hushed tones, etc etc). True, said lines could partly be down to the fact that Meat & Shake don’t take reservations – but as you shall soon see, there’s more to it than that…

Onto the food then. Meat & Shake’s website proclaims – “The burger is omnipotent and irresistible, it can never be weakened.” This is probably true.

 

I like that they don’t take themselves too seriously. However, like any good burger place, they DO take their meat very seriously.

 

 

Their burgers are minced daily from 35-day aged beef – and also sourced from Selfridges butcher, Macken Brothers of Chiswick (who I am pretty also look after a few of the Marriott‘s steakhouses). And speaking of Marriott steakhouses….

 

I’m going to blame the delicious/filling shake (and the fact that it was Tuesday) for why I skip on the opportunity to consume a 1.5kg tomahawk steak. YEAH they actually do fucking tomahawk steaks!? Dayummmmm. Also I’m not sure Lizzie is ready to witness such a thing.

 

One thing that might not be immediately obvious about Meat and Shake that they’re also much known and much loved amongst the Muslim community (having made a show at the Halal food festival etc). Which means that everything on the menu is ABSOLUTELY HALAL (good memes never die, only the actors that play them…). So, no pork or alcohol is served on the premises – though there’s quite a selection of virgin cocktails and I believe they use turkey for the bacon.