MEATliquor

I went to Meat Liquor sometime ago with my girfriend straight from work and were amazed to see the long queue that had formed already. My partner had attempted to come before but unfortunately, had to give up on it after 1 hour of waiting in line.

We got in the place after about an hour of standing in the cold and were greeted by a dark and dingy place with lots of red and black, and some fairly loud music playing, which created a really great vibe and atmosphere.

I found the service to be very friendly and accomodating and we were fed within 30 minutes of ordering.

I will admit, standing outside in the cold for 45 minutes really wasn't very fun but it was definately worth it! The "Dead Hippie" Burger I can honestly say is the best burger I have ever eaten. The chips were really nice too and my girfriend really enjoyed her chilli cheesburger.

My only regret was not sampling some of their Chilli Cheese Fries which looked absolutely delicous! I will definitely be ordering some of them when I go back.

I really liked the music in the place as well which set a really great rocky vibe in the place without being too loud and detracting from conversation and the food.

Overall I though this place was absolutely amazing and I will going back very soon, and very often!!!
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Christian - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Friday, March 02, 2012

I'll admit the burgers are good but nowhere near as good as they should be for somewhere as inflexible, unaccommodating and pretentious as this place.

Their ridiculous door policy is pride of place on the website and their miserable staff rigidly enforces it.

Things don't get any better inside either. We waited over an hour for our order to be taken and when asking for additional toppings we were told “you can take off but you can't add on" despite offering to pay for it.

You have to admire their staff though, miserable to the bitter end. Even when calmly explaining why we weren’t leaving a tip she maintained that this was how all New York diners operated. I lived in New York for 2yrs and nothing was too much trouble.

Do yourself a favour and give this place a wide berth.

Get a better burger, better service and better atmosphere at the Hawksmoor.....or burger king for that matter!
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jonathan nosworthy
3 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 1
Monday, February 06, 2012

Definitely London's best cheeseburger, in terms of flavour, consistency, texture and non-collapsibility. The sides were also delicious. Shame about the chick-problem waitress who delivered our order to the couple next door. We suggested that as we had been there 20 mins already and they had just sat down, and the order was exactly what we had ordered but not what they had ordered, perhaps that was ours. She thought not, leaving it next door while she 'went to check', And was never seen again. Except when she brought next door's order to them without a mention of the previous mistake, which we had sorted out between ourselves. Weird. And quite rude.
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HW3 - View all reviews by this user
7 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Friday, January 20, 2012

Went to Meat Liquor last night. really loved the attitude on the website about not taking bookings, thought it was very funny.

We had to queue for about 20 minutes but it really is worth it. I said to my partner on the way in that the staff looked brilliant and they really were. They recommended cocktails, they were funny and most of all, even though they were worked off their feet they had so much time for us.

The food is great American slap up grub, does it exactly what it says on the tin. We of course over-ordered and got buffalo wings, two burgers, fries onion rings AND slaw but it was all ace. All so reasonably priced as well!

Yes, its a bit rowdy and yes the music is loud but who cares? We don't all want to be sat in stuffy 'polite' restaurants all the time!

Recommend to anyone and I would go back.
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Stringer Love - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Thursday, January 12, 2012

I can't understand some of the criticisms directed at MEAT Liquor. Obviously if you don't like dim lighting, loud (but excellent) music, and a bit of a queue, then it might not be the place for you. Similarly, if you're expecting the second coming - understandable given all the hype - then you might like to remember that IT'S JUST A BURGER, but a damn good one at that.

I fell in love with the meat when it was still served from a wagon so I guess I'm just grateful to be able to sit down (inside!) and have a few of their potent cocktails while I wait for my grease feast. I like the burgers and the messy Philly cheese steak but the menu's unsung hero has to be the buffalo chicken burger - a winning combo of crispy fried chicken, doused in hot sauce, and slammed in a bun with a bit of creamy slaw. If you can eat it without ending up with Hot Sauce Face, I salute you.

Don't leave without trying the Crack Pie - their take on the Momofuku classic. Their boozy ice-cream is great too. Service can be a little scatty, with waitresses seemingly hired for cool factor rather than experience, but I've never waited too long for my food and they're always friendly. I love the dark artwork and the dive bar vibe and have taken guests aged 21-55 who have all been equally impressed. SO glad to finally have somewhere to eat near Bond Street.
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-K- - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, January 03, 2012

Good burgers, but too dark to see menu.
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Toots
7 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 7
Friday, December 30, 2011

If you had the good fortune to visit #meateasy in New Cross in the early months of 2011 you might find Meat Liquor a little bit of a let-down. However, as Hunter himself sort of said: "the kind of peak that never comes again. New Cross in early 2011 was a very special time and place to be a part of. Maybe it meant something. Maybe not, in the long run . . . but no explanation, no mix of words, food, music or memories can touch that sense of knowing that you were there and alive in that corner of time and the world. Whatever it meant. . . . "

We rocked up at Meat Liquor on a Friday night around 6pm hoping to beat the queue and sure enough we walked straight in and had our choice of tables. Feeling a little bit "sensitive" after a long hard week we grabbed a table in the slightly quieter area at the back of the restaurant to the left of the bar - this would be a good spot if you are with a large party.

The trademark literary 'wallpaper' from the New Cross venue was in place and the dim red lighting, excellent soundtrack and somewhat scatty service made this all feel very familiar despite the new location in the heart of the beast.

We kicked off our evening with a selection of cocktails from the very inviting, well-priced drinks menu. As before these well put-together concoctions came in jam jars and really hit the spot. I particularly liked the novel take on the Negroni while the House Grog was a very tasty rum based creeper which is sensibly limited to a maximum order of two per person - not sure the good Doctor would have approved of this bit of nannying though. We teamed our drinks up with the already legendary deep-fried pickles, which - trust me on this one- no trip to Meat Liquor should be without.

Suitably lubricated we were now ready for our burgers and despite the carnage around us in the fast filling restaurant we managed to get the attention of a charming burgerette and place our order. Half an hour later we were deep into burger heaven. My chilli burger was just lovely with plenty of heat and a great charred patty packing plenty of flavour. I tried a small bite of B's chilli chicken burger and for one brief moment had a touch of the food envy. Our dining companions, big Phil and the delightful Kate (who had been mistaken for a stripper from the "club" next door) were also swooning over their choices and comparing the Meat Liquor offering very favourably with the burgers they had enjoyed during the summer at "The Rye".

The side dishes, and in particular the fries, are a big improvement on the New Cross days. The slaw was very tasty and for those folk who don't get what this place is all about, there is a red neon sign bearing the legend "meat" over the front door, you even have a small "rabbit food" section on the menu.

We washed all this meaty goodness down with some fine wine from the short but well put together and reasonably priced wine list. Not sure I noticed it on our visit but anywhere with wine by the awesome Charles Smith on the wine list gets a big thumbs up from me.

We left at some point around 9pm well fed, with our wallets intact and glad we were not in the ever growing queue of foodie hipsters snaking their way down the street. This year has seen me on a bit of a burger pilgrimage around the capital and Meat Liquor is definitely top five in my book. This dark, dirty, sexy dive of a place will definitely not be too everyone's taste but we are already planning a return visit in the New Year.
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Nunhead Neil
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Sunday, December 18, 2011

Went at 10pm on Saturday night. Long wait to be seated and for food.

Food was good. Good American beer.

I wouldn't go back because the music was incredibly old. This makes me sound like an old fudd-duddy but it was like being in a club and impossible to have a conversation.

Good place to go if you are absolutely smashed and just want to eat.
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5 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 6
Thursday, December 08, 2011

I've been there twice, now... second time last night. Although the burgers are good, I'll have to think hard before going back again. The service and wait the first time was bad, but the second time around it was utterly horrific. No burger on earth warrants such a wait, particularly when your order gets screwed up in the end. It's a shame, but it just ain't worth it.
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Michael
5 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Great burger.

The staff are not skilled or charming enough to cope with the popularity of the place.

Would go back, but allow plenty of time if you plan on visiting.

We ate at Friday lunch in the 1st week of opening - no need to queue, but we got there at 12:15.

Like I said, great burger.
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Coops
6 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 6
Thursday, November 24, 2011