Restaurants

There’s little difference between the five restaurants in this small, London-only chain. The ambience at each branch is quite smart yet approachable, the walls are either whitewashed or stripped-back brick, and the menu is dominated – and we mean dominated – by meat. If you’re going to make beef your speciality, the strength of the current competition means you’d better do it well. And given the prices charged here, Black & Blue doesn’t do it well enough. The burgers are reliable, but they’re also pricier and less impressive than anything you’ll find at the more relaxed likes of Gourmet Burger Kitchen . The steaks are by no means poor, yet they’re nonetheless left in the shade by those of the Gaucho restaurants , another chain but one with a more impressive pedigree. Once you move away from the meat, things get even iffier. A starter of chargrilled king prawns was unpleasant, its accompanying garlic butter a nasty gloop, while the chips that arrived with the fillet steak were pretty poor, and the salad was of supermarket standard. Not great.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009