King Street, Manchester
Miller & Carter is renowned
for being one of Manchester’s finest steak houses. Situated on King Street,
surrounded by other upmarket restaurants including Rosso and Jamie’s Italian,
it’s in a prime spot in the heart of the city centre, but away from the hustle
and bustle of the shops.
At Miller & Carter, it’s
all about the best of British and Irish beef. They pride themselves on serving
only the most flavoursome cuts of meat, sourced from carefully selected cattle,
reared on sustainable farms.
Inside, it’s a relaxing yet sophisticated
affair, with maroon carpets on the floors and leather seating. You feel like
you’re in a posh pub. There’s a theme of simple but well prepared running
through Miller & Carter. There’s no pretentiousness, they’re not trying to
be something they’re not.
I’ll be honest and confess
that I’m not a huge fan of steak. I know this is a controversial opinion to
come from the mouth of somebody who loves home-grown food as much as I do, but,
generally, it doesn’t get me excited. However, when eating in a steakhouse, it
would be rude not to. ‘When in Rome’ and all that.
As is the case with many city
centre restaurants, they run a lunch menu for daytime dining, which is
guaranteed to increase the number of customers flocking through the door. You
often feel that you can’t justify spending a fortune on a meal in the middle of
the day, so a set-price lunch menu gives the opportunity to have a top-quality
lunch at a posh restaurant for a fraction of the price. Lighter bites at a
lighter price, if you like. I should use that.
Miller & Carter’s lunch
menu offers two courses from £10.95 or three from £13.95. They say ‘from’
because some of the dishes are supplemented. At least, that way, nobody can
accuse them of misleading you. Even with the additional £2.50 supplement, it’s
still the cheapest steak you’ll find in the centre of town. I didn’t bother
with a starter, plunging straight into the Steak Frites for main course: a 30
day aged 7 ounce steak served with seasoned fries, a balsamic glazed tomato and
a salad garnish. It was an impressive looking beast, thinly sliced and cooked
medium rare, with a knob of garlic butter melting into the top of it. It was deliciously
juicy and succulent, but it didn’t quite melt in my mouth to the extent that I
had hoped. It wasn’t chewy, but was slightly tough in places. The fries were
deliciously crispy and full of flavour, but it was sparse on the salad.
 |
| Steak Frites |
It was superb value for money,
making for an affordable lunchtime treat, but it reminded me why I don’t
understand the fascination with steak. I can’t ever imagine paying the extortionate
prices that many regard as acceptable for the superlative cuts of meat, because
I find it rather boring. Although I enjoyed my lunch, I couldn’t help but think
I might have enjoyed the fish and chips more.
On the main menu, there’s a
vast range of cuts, sides and sauces to choose from, but it’s not all about
steak. There are plenty of alternatives: lamb, chicken and fish dishes,
burgers, pastas and salads. Having observed meals being delivered to nearby
tables, the majority of which looked beautifully presented on charcuterie
boards, I can confirm that they looked incredibly satisfying. There’s also a
chef’s special menu and even a ‘younger guests’ menu, allowing the kids to
enjoy a three course meal for just £9.95.
For dessert, I had salted
caramel profiteroles, again, something which wouldn’t usually be my first
choice. The profiteroles were rather small but tooth-achingly sweet, covered in
crystallised salted caramel and drizzled in toffee sauce, served with a pot of
melted Belgian chocolate, intended for dipping, but the gloopy chocolate was
poured all over the profiteroles before it had chance to cool down. Well, I
didn’t want to run the risk of it solidifying in the ramekin, did I? There was
no way I was going to feel sluggish thanks to this almighty sugar rush. I
thoroughly enjoyed them, but even for my saccharine pallet, they were a little overly
sickly.
 |
| Salted Caramel Profiteroles |
For a total of £13.45, I’d had
a steak lunch and a dessert in one of Manchester’s elite restaurants, which certainly
isn’t bad going. If you’re a steak aficionado, this is the place for you. Even
if you’re not, the lunch menu offers plenty of other choices. I regret not
having a starter, and I return I’d love to try the baked cheddar mushrooms or
the salt and pepper squid.
I noticed there were lots of
business men and women in suits, so it’s obviously a popular place for city
centre workers to meet for lunch. I like to invent life stories for these
people in my head: what do they do? Why are they here? For all I know, the waistcoat-clad
people who are throwing funny looks in my direction whilst I’m taking pictures
of my food could be about to clinch an important business deal. Sorry if I
ruined the ambience for you.
Treat yourself, your friends
or your colleagues to a lunch at Miller & Carter Steakhouse. Take a look at
the menus on their website, where you can also find out how their steaks are prepared,
from field to fork, and pick up some tips on how to cook the perfect steak
yourself.
No comments:
Post a Comment