Hix Oyster & Chop House

It is noticeable how the average review of this place becomes lower the longer the restaurant has been open and the further Mark Hix has spread himself across London. It is unsurprising, I suppose, that the Oyster and Chop House should start to feel a little unloved.

And it does. Half of the things I wanted to eat were all consumed at lunch, leaving none for the dinner service. Very disappointing. I went for the steak and oyster pie, which was a formidably rich bit of old british cooking. With only one oyster (which felt like a bit of a con, really).

The other food was so-so. Worth about half of what is charged for it, and delivered by pretty hapless staff, who appeared not to know that simply saying "sorry" sometimes goes a long way.

I won't be returning, and I won't be recommending it to anybody else. Average and expensive.
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4 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 2
Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Went for lunch with 2 colleagues. My starter of potted prawns were not what i was expecting, and were a little too saucy, although very tasty (but i would have preferred less salt). My friends nettle soup with poached egg was lovely, but tasted pretty much like the one's we used to make at home (very easy!). main of beef and oyster pie had no oyster in it, it tasted like a good steak pie, although there was definitely too much salt for my liking and i couldn't finish it as a result. My side order of champ was good, although one of my friends who had mashed potato was so salty it tasted like eating teaspoons of salt. Not one of us could eat it, and one of my friend loves salt and all things unhealthy. it was even too much for her.

The Bakewell tart that we shared for pudding was amazing and i wished i'd missed the starter and main and just eaten two puddings instead.

Food is better in a good gastro pub. i would be unlikely to go back, not even for the very tasty oysters.
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6 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Went for 10th wedding anniversary for lunch. Took 7 year old soon too. Staff were friendly and helpful and were able to offer half portions for him which he thoroughly enjoyed.

On the plus side the waitress we had was friendly. My son's fishfingers and chips were good and the crackling was excellent. The one pudding we ordered was also very good and the hix stout went very well with the oysters.

We had 8 oysters between 2 which were lovely but there was loose shell on them which was a bit unpleasant when you got a mouthfull of it!!

We both had steak a rib and another cut which I don't remember. The steak was cooked well but like others have said here it wasn't the greatest we have had and that is what we were both expecting. I also object to having to pay seperately for sides when spending £30 on one steak. We ordered one side which was sprout tops and they were very good.

The wine list whilst long did not give much away on each wine - a clue to the grape variety would be helpful to those who are not very knowledgeable. As it was we asked our waitress for a recommendation based on our taste and she recommended the most expensive one.

Overall the experience was OK, we would not go back but we are glad that we gave it a go. If you are looking for a great steak there superior ones on offer for good seafood go to Bentleys.
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Clare Blake
6 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Friday, October 29, 2010

I liked the place. The setup is great, service excellent and food overall very good. The steak (we shared a Porterhouse) wasn't the best in town, but still pretty acceptable and cooked to perfection. Will definitely be going again. PS: Wine list so and so.
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Pascal
9 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Monday, October 18, 2010

Went there last night Wednesday 8th September. Noisy very overcrowded place made the atmosphere almost unpleasant. Considering the volume of diners in the place and lack of space for the staff to move around, service was prompt and attentive. We were two and starters were shellfish soup which was mediocre, but certainly better than a Mashed spuds and mushroom concoction (who thought that one up!). Main course were faultless steaks which were excellent, and cooked exactly to order. Both puddings looked exactly the same - apple pie and Victoria pudding. Both frankly were insipid, with heavy thick butter pastry that was indigestible judging by the fact that it it still sitting firmly in the same place that it was at 9pm last night! The chef that made the custard that went with the Victoria pudding needs to be sent for re-training, as what was served as custard was separated and curdled. Not an experience I would wish to repeat i am afraid.
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John
5 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 4
Thursday, September 09, 2010

Would not recommend this restaurant to friends - service was a mixture of friendly waiter/bolshy waitress. The menu didn't impress - my main was breaded pork with duck egg and capers - pork was dry and overwhelmed by the egg and capers). Asparagus was good though. We went at 5.30pm so we didn't get a sense of the ambience (as it was empty). Meal cost £130 for two - and it felt like a waste of good money. I'd rather go to a good cafe for a fry-up for a tenner - makes sense.

Please note: I contacted the restaurant about my experience of the service and received no response.
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Francoise
2 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 0
Saturday, August 21, 2010

after reading the reviews i thought Hix would be very good.

i came away disappointed. I found the food pretty average, especially the steak which to me was below par.

i also felt the room to be quite squashed and the waiting staff to be too stressed.

on a plus point great crackling and the Hix oyster ale (which they serve to you in tankards) is worth a try.
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richard
4 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 3
Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Great setting, great service, great food!

BUT be wary of their bills! We were charged double service charge. An eagle-eyed friend spotted that the stated 12.5% service calculation was actually calculated at 25% - the bill stated "12.5% service charge" but the amount was 25% of the bill.

Unfortunately the explanations provided by the manager and HQ did not add up. According to the former this had been happening randomly. According to HQ we were the first victims of their malfunctioning EPOS system.

To this day I do not know whether we were being taken for a ride or whether they genuinely had a problem with their EPOS system. Beware!
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5 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 5
Tuesday, March 02, 2010

It was meant to be an Aniversary Celebration for my wife and I, but not only did we celebrate 20 years, but also celebrated one of our best dining experiences at Hix, Oyster and Chop House. We were seated and looked after right from the start. It wasn't long before we were munching on Pork Crackling with apple sauce, and enjoying aperitif's. The Crackling was tasty, but needed more salt and a lighter cruncheness. The apple sauce went well with it.

I had a couple of West Mersea N0.1's Oysters. If you havn't tried an Oyster, then I would recommend one of these as it had such a fresh taste of the sea flavour with a creamier chewy texture to some. Really delicious.

As a starter I had the Mark Hix Cure Salmon. It was delicious. Not too salty but with a subtle sweet smokey flavour. My wife enjoyed her Old spot jellied ham. She said it was very nice with it's slightly spicy flavour, but could still taste the Pork flavour. The homemade Piccalilli was the perfect partner to a super dish.

As a main we went for the Angus Wing Rib for two. It cost £53.00, but when it arrived to our table we were very impressed. Hix is all about it's meat, and we were not to be dissapointed. The beast was carved from it's rib, and sliced into portions by a Chef at the table. When you first taste this fine 28 day aged piece of Beef, you are just amazed at not only the taste, but the tenderness. The quality is of a high standard, not that you would expect any other from a restaurant so close to Smithfields Meat market. Wow...was that good, and with a well done crust encasing that wonderful Beef. It came with a bernaise sauce and we just ordered a side order of chips. So refreshing to eat with a Good sharp knife rather than a traditional steak knife.

The wine list was excellant, and undecided between two, we were offered to try before we purchased. That's a nice touch.

Desserts had a good British Choice to the Menu. We both went for the Treacle Tart which came simply with a nugget of clotted cream. Well, what can we say. Total indulgence, and totally satisfying. The pastry was light, and the filling was nearer the overcooked rather than under which gave it a more caramelised flavour.

We would thouroughly recommend Hix, Oyster and Chop House. It has a very relaxed atmosphere, serving Great British Food at it's highest standard of quality. We paid £201.00 for just the two of us. But that was 4 courses, two bottles of wine, coffees etc. But one thing to keep in mind. Once you've tried the Beef cooked on the bone here, you know you'll never have anything that could come close to equal it.....

Superb..!!!
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Richard Shelton
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Thursday, January 28, 2010

I think I have a new favourite restaurant. Date with the wife last night at Hix Oyster and Chop House. There's something very sexy and very London about the place. It feels special without being stuffy. Same goes for the service. Not pretentious but still knowledgeable about the menu. We had house cocktails when we sat down, along with a bowl of pork crackling and apple sauce. For starters we shared a dozen native oysters then moved on to beef rib steak for the wife and veal chop with offal for me (well it is called an oyster and chop house after all) with onion rings and cauliflower cheese as sides. The waiter recommended beers for me and wines for her (great and reasonably priced drinks menu); all were well-matched. Everything on the table was stellar. Even the veal kidney and heart, which I'm not always crazy about. Massive portions kept us from trying dessert, opting instead for an Armagnac and whiskey. Considering we had a couple beers and two glasses of wine, rather than an expensive bottle of wine with our meal, it came out a bit pricier than I was expecting at £190 for two. Worth it though.
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Dan
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Sunday, January 17, 2010