The Monaco steakhouse has moved into the red-silk restaurant of an independent Soho hotel, kept the name of the woman it was built for, and cooks Wagyu beside her Italian favourites.
Noel Snr, a magician, began every love letter to his wife, Jackie, with the same two words. The restaurant at Broadwick Soho, the hotel their son Noel Hayden created on the corner of Broadwick Street and Berwick Street, is named after them. Dear Jackie is now the London home of Beefbar, and it has kept the name.
Dear Jackie at Broadwick Soho
Hayden grew up in the Bournemouth seaside hotel his parents ran, where Jackie kept things moving behind the scenes. Broadwick Soho is an independent hotel of 57 rooms, started by a group of friends and designed by Martin Brudnizki. Its restaurant runs across two floors, with Murano lighting, red silk walls and plush booths.
Riccardo Giraudi started Beefbar in Monte-Carlo in 2005, and the hotel calls Dear Jackie Beefbar’s London flagship. It was reported to open in September, and Beefbar presents it as the meeting of two families, the Haydens and the Giraudis.
The Beefbar menu
Giraudi imports meat as well as running restaurants, and the menu starts with the supply. The beef comes direct from producers in Japan, Australia, the United States, Namibia and Europe. Wagyu from Rangers Valley in Australia and Snake River Farms in the United States sits beside a Giraudi Selection of heritage cuts, and Japanese Wagyu from Kobe or Matsusaka is sold by the 100g.
Around the grill come the Beefbar street food dishes: Wagyu kebabs, the Mini Big Smash, king crab taquitos, and a mango ceviche of sea bream. The Croque Sando is dry-cured beef ribeye ham with mozzarella and La Sauce Beefbar. The Bad Boy Bun is fried chicken cooked in Wagyu tallow, in a steamed bao with a Szechuan pepper glaze, and the mashed potato comes six ways, from gravy to seasonal truffle.
A section of the menu called Soho Icons is written for the hotel. It holds a Wagyu shepherd’s pie, made with lamb as well as Wagyu, and Dear Jackie’s Nostalgic Milanese, of chicken, British veal ham, smoked cheddar and horseradish. Jackie’s love of Italian food runs through the rest, in a Wagyu and veal Bolognese with pappardelle and a run of pizzette.
One dish starts here. Ispahan Bloom, fish with rosewater, lychee and raspberry, appears at Dear Jackie before Beefbar sends it to its tables elsewhere. The restaurant can also be taken whole, for up to 50 seated.
Lunch daily from 12:00 to 15:30; aperitivo from 15:30 to 18:00; dinner from 18:00 to 00:00, and to 00:30 on Friday and Saturday. Street food £16 to £24; steaks from £28. A discretionary 15 per cent service charge is added.
Beefbar at Dear Jackie, Broadwick Soho, 20 Broadwick Street, London W1F 8HT.
Discover more at broadwicksoho.com