Smith & Wollensky
Adelphi Building, 1-11 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6HT
Telephone: 020 7321 6007
When you think of Steakhouses one name is synonymous, that of Smith & Wollensky’s. This US steakhouse, having triumphantly expanded across the US with 10 restaurants, has now taken its expansion further afield, choosing London as its first restaurant outside the US. As is fitting with the brand which provides elegant dining rooms in intimate or iconic locations, its newest arrival in London is no exception, choosing as its location the monumental art deco styled Adelphi Building, situated between the Strand and the Thames. The Adelphi Building forms part of the London Skyline as you cross Waterloo Bridge, and residents have included JM Barrie (author of Peter Pan), George Bernard Shaw and Thomas Hardy, all notable in their fields, as are Smith & Wollensky in theirs.
I first came across Smith & Wollensky’s name during my frequent trips to New York with work in the 1980’s, and I always wondered who Mr Smith and Mr Wollensky were, so I felt a slight touch of astonishment when I found out that despite the names Charlie Smith and Ralph Wollensky being used in the opening announcements, they were in fact surnames pulled randomly from a Manhattan phone directory by the real founder Alan Stillman, and the Christian names of his dogs! One thing that hasn’t changed is the style, quality and service that were present then, and the attention to detail. As you slip from the hustle and bustle of the Strand with its theatres and shops, into John Adam Street, you seem to not only leave the crowds, you also seem to step back in time, and that feeling is perfectly captured by the Martin Brudnizki designed interior. The ceilings are high and the space extensive (15,000 square feet), but with clever touches. The art deco features are shown off well giving a feeling of intimacy as well as space, and this maximises the natural light.
On entering, my wife and I made our way past well-spaced out tables and booths to the bar, where we relaxed with a cocktail whilst perusing the menu, which oddly almost took me back to those old days, as it appeared to have changed little. I suppose Smith & Wollensky are following that well known adage ‘If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it’, as all the old favourites I remembered were still there. After a light and almost meringue like ‘Perfect Lady’ cocktail, we were shown to our booth by a waiter dressed in a pristine white jacket, where we knuckled down to the serious job of choosing our dinner. The starter choice is extensive and is mainly dominated by seafood with Salmon (£9),Yellow Fin Tuna (£14) or King Scallops with pea pure´e and bacon (£18), and we selected the Signature Jumbo Lump Crab Cake (£15) and the Crispy Salt and Pepper Squid with Mango Chilli Salsa (£9). In the UK crab cakes usually have more potato than crab, but this is Smith & Wollensky’s, and was almost entirely crab which was well seasoned and oozing freshness. The Salt and Pepper Squid for me needed a little more taste, but were good, and maybe my real gripe was that there wasn’t enough salsa which I loved, with its mix of sweetness and spice. If you really want a feast then you should look no further than the two sharing platters which consist of a tower of Lobster, Jumbo Lump Crabmeat, Jumbo Shrimp, Cumbrae Oysters and Amandes Clams paired with Classic Cocktail Sauce, Cognac Mustard Sauce, Ginger Sauce and Sherry Migonette priced at £75 for the Charlie Smith, or £110 for the Ralph Wollensky.
The mains are unashamedly dominated by steak, (well it is a steakhouse!), but you can have fish, lobster, chicken and lamb, but frankly having that isn’t why you would come here. You come here for the steak which is butchered and dry aged on-site, and is hand-cut in their in-house butchery. The meat is predominately USDA Prime steaks which are a rarity in the world of steakhouses and are chosen from the top 2%, and are hand selected for the rich even marbling. All of this is enhanced through a careful dry-ageing process lasting 28 days which intensifies the flavour and tenderness.To cap this off, these ‘Rolls Royce’ of steaks are chargrilled to perfection and are ably supported by some special accompaniments. I went for the signature Bone-In Rib Eye 24oz (£55), as I just love the highly marbled, beefy taste and truly believe that it is the tastiest cut. My wife had a 12oz premium Scottish Fillet Mignon (£40), which you can also have as an 8oz, with an added gorgonzola crust (£4). Both were succulent inside and nicely crisp on the outside. Other cuts are the 14oz Sirloin (£36) or a 21oz NY Cut Bone-in Sirloin (£52), and because of the in-house butchery there are many specials throughout the week to look out for. To perfectly complement the steaks we had some Steakhouse Fries and also selected from the classic selection (for 2) the Creamed Spinach (£9), a must have with a steak, the Onion Rings (£9) and Truffled Mac‘n’Cheese (£10).
From my previous visits all those years ago, I remembered not to eat too much before coming here and I advise you to do the same, as the portions are American size not UK, hence I was raring to go when the dessert menu arrived and was not disappointed. Smith & Wollensky do not do things by halves and have their own pastry chef who prepares the desserts daily on site, and it shows. I opted for the Gigantic Chocolate Cake (£15) which truly lives up to its name and is gigantic with a capital G. This can be shared between probably 4 people and consists of moist chocolate layer cake brushed with Baileys Irish Cream, chocolate mousse and covered with chocolate ganache. I am a chocoholic and this is my kind of pudding, as the cake is light and the mousse suitably gooey, and my kids loved the doggy bag I brought back for them with this in it, as even having left room this is not a dessert one person can eat alone. My wife had the Apple Tarte Fine (£8) which she declared as being one of the finest desserts she had eaten, with the light puff pastry layered with frangipan and apples coated in a salted caramel sauce.
Smith & Wollensky’s dining room is split over two levels each with a separate bar which can cater for any type of private party, and if your group is smaller they also have 3 additional private dining rooms for those special occasions. Smith & Wollensky offers a timeless, vibrant, yet relaxed atmosphere that envelopes guests in gracious hospitality. It takes many of the features of the Adelphi Building and its art deco style and marries them with the distinctive Smith & Wollensky brand, the result of which is a dining experience that offers simple refinement in the grand tradition, and I for one am glad that they chose London for their first foray out of America. However, I am not sure if my waistband agrees with me!
