Goodman City

Goodman opened its first London restaurant, in Mayfair, in 2009. It dry-ages its beef on site in a temperature-controlled environment, but the new City branch turns this into a visual feature with a glass-walled dry-ageing room. Cuts of the day are chalked on a blackboard.

Nebraska is a favoured source for the USDA prime corn-fed beef, though the company also buys from this side of the Atlantic, so you may find Black Label Angus from south Devon, Buccleuch estate beef from Scotland, or rare-breed Belted Galloway from the Lake District.

The menu is reassuringly straightforward, but speckled with luxury ingredients such as lobster, truffle and foie gras. A sweet herring starter salutes the Russian owners (there are several branches in Moscow), while wedge salad, caesar salad and creamed spinach defer to their New York inspirations. If you're not here for the steak, consider opting for grilled lobster, fish of the day or roast chicken breast with chorizo and spinach risotto.

We clocked a pleasing choice of wines by the glass, with the reds offering the most diversity (including Californian zinfandel, Sicilian nero d'avola and Marlborough pinot noir). Prices are City-ruthless, though, with bottles starting at £28.

The main dining area near the open kitchen feels slightly like a theme park canteen; we prefer the look of the bar with its old herringbone-patterned wooden floor, polished leather chairs and inviting booths. Another branch, in Canary Wharf, is scheduled to open at the end of 2011.