With sustainability higher up the agenda than ever in the food world, restaurants are increasingly encouraging diners to opt for fare that is a little more hearty – quite literally.
Offal is all too often maligned on menus, but not by those in the know. The term refers to the internal edible parts of an animal – not the muscle tissue we are used to eating as meat (like chicken breast or steak), but the internal organs that most of us don't like to think about too much.
Yet, nose-to-tail eating – the culinary philosophy of using every bit of the animal – is not just a sustainable way to eat, but a darn tasty one too.
If you’re looking to learn your tongue from your tripe, these are the restaurants going the whole hog (and sheep, and cow) in London.
St John
As the undisputed authority on all things offal, a trip to Fergus Henderson’s St John restaurants is top of the list for those looking to expand their meaty horizons. Having pioneered the nose-to-tail agenda in contemporary cooking, these restaurants are now mentioned among the best in the world, with a surprising, daily changing selection of dishes that intrigue more than they immediately appeal. Choose from the likes of braised tripe with turnips and bacon, rabbit offal with celeriac and walnut, or the ever-present and world famous dish of bone marrow with parsley salad and sourdough toast.
Various locations, stjohnrestaurant.com
Flank
Brighton-hailing Tom Griffiths is one to watch on the offal scene. A fervent proponent of the joys of nose-to-tail, his restaurant concept Flank is currently residing in Spitalfields Market, serving up comfort food without boundaries. The menu changes frequently, but recent dishes have included a "Piggy Bun" packed with pork in all its forms, bone marrow gnocchi, sweetbreads with plum sauce, offal toast and pig head with apple, peach and pan liquor.
16 Horner Square, E1 6EW, oldspitalfieldsmarket.com
Black Axe Mangal
Black Axe Mangal were never going to do things politely: the USP here is mixing a Turkish fire oven with offal and heavy metal music. The ever-changing menu consists of a motley crew of neglected meat cuts, sizzled pig extremities and more than the occasional organ. The lamb offal flatbread here is so beloved that it is the only dish to stay on the menu everyday: a lahmajun-style dish that is unctuous in its indiscriminate meatiness. Otherwise look out for flavour-pumped north African and Middle Eastern takes of the odd kidney or ox heart.
156 Canonbury Road, N1 2UP, blackaxemangal.com
Barrafina
When a restaurant is owned by two brothers called Hart, an offal-charged menu practically writes itself. Originally the design of chef Nieves Barragan Mohacho, these wildly successful tapas bars are no stranger to unusual animal parts. Small but perfectly formed plates offer morsels of more off-piste meats charged with Iberian flavours: calf’s liver served with tumbet roasted vegetables, cold cuts of calf tongue and both the kidneys and brains of milk fed lambs. If you’re wondering which to visit, Adelaide Street is where you’ll find the most hair-raising dishes.
W1 and two locations in WC2, barrafina.co.uk
Mac & Wild
While many Londoners are still a little averse to the idea of offal, the Scots centre a whole national festival around it. Haggis, the centerpiece of a Burns Night supper, is made by stuffing minces “sheep’s pluck” – or heart, liver and lungs – into the poor sheep’s stomach, with some oatmeal, suet and onion thrown in for good measure. Scottish restaurant Mac & Wild are a champion of the dish in the capital, serving balls of it deep fried as “Haggis Pops” as well as putting it in its mac and cheese.
W1 and EC2, macandwild.com
Ceviche
Connoisseurs of Peruvian cuisine will know that it is a culinary world dominated by fresh fish, zingy citrus and fruity hints of searing spice. You might, therefore be a little surprised to find an offal dish on the menu, but Martin Morales’ restaurants cater to the earthy side of Andean cuisine too. At Ceviche, you’ll find a hunk of burning love in the form of skewered beef hearts flavoured with panca chilli. If you want to go the whole hog, a large group can enjoy them alongside a whole suckling pig.
W1 and EC1, cevichefamily.com
Hawksmoor Guildhall
Superlative steak restaurant Hawksmoor prides itself on serving up perfectly cooked, prime cuts of cow. Things here, however, don’t stop at the rump. Head to the Guildhall location on a weekday morning to find one of the most jaw-dropping breakfast offerings in the capital: a fry up featuring six different types of meat. The sharing breakfast includes a melt-in-the-mouth black pudding, grilled bone marrow and trotter baked beans, as well as a smoked bacon chop, short-rib bubble and squeak, and sausages made with pork, beef and mutton. In short, there are very few bits of animal that aren’t on the menu, and it’s all glorious.
10 Basinghall Street, The City, EC2V 5BQ, thehawksmoor.com
