The restaurant on everybody’s greasy grinning lips opens a third instalment in the heart of the City, serving up steaks that just seem to be getting better and better.

The Venue
The resounding success of the Spitalfields and Seven Dials venues has put Hawksmoor right at the very forefront of London's renewed love affair with the steakhouse. Blame Beefeater and Berni Inn, perhaps, but it wasn’t easy to find good steak in the capital for years – now they’re everywhere. Few places do them better than Hawksmoor though, and even fewer from such suitably masculine venues. This Guildhall incarnation is pretty similar to its brother in Seven Dials, where a deliciously atmospheric bar leads through to a huge dining room bedecked in dark wood, even darker leather and a few art deco touches that work as a nod to Stateside - where they know a thing or two about cooking cow. There’s certainly something of the speakeasy about it too, which makes a trip to the bar for something Old Fashioned pretty much a must.

The Atmosphere
It might be just about the perfect place for the City boys to come over all peacock, but this isn’t just for the men, it seems. Both the dining room and the bar are filled to the rafters with a pretty even split of the sexes, so ladies, don’t be put off – you’ll be missing a trick if you do. Many of the (very trendy) staff have transferred over from the other two venues so you can expect that same informal, chatty service that combines well with what’s pretty blatant enthusiasm – staff get to try the wares, so it’s no wonder they’re fans too. It’s all very pleasantly informal, and even though the somewhat cavernous dining room could feel a little hollow were it not busy, that doesn't really tend to happen, so expect a room filled with an intoxicating bit of hustle and bustle.

The Food
The steaks are clearly the thing at Hawksmoor, but their quality doesn’t seem to be at the expense of anything else, bar some overly battered onion rings that could do with a little honing. The starters kick things off well, with some truly brilliant short ribs (£10) from Plum Pudding’s piggies needing just the lightest of touches to give up what’s a pretty lethargic fight to avoid collapse, whilst similarly well-cooked mussels (£8) impress with their curves, bobbing about in a thick bacon and blue cheese broth astute enough to play second fiddle.

Onto Hawksmoor’s bread and butter, as it were. A mammoth 600 grams of bone-in sirloin (£30) is cooked to a perfect rare, with some seriously soft flavour nestled against the bone, whilst a fillet (300g - £32) showcases similarly impressive handling at the grill, including an admirably restrained approach to charring. The steaks here really do need to be tried, so there’s not a great deal else to say about these brilliant slabs of joy, save, perhaps, for a word of thanks to all those Longhorn Cattle in the sky – you make some of the very, very best steaks in London. High five.

With meat this good, sides would be superfluous were it not for the fact that they’re pretty impressive too. Triple cooked chips (£4) are like a freshly pressed suit on a fat man – crisp on the outside, nice and soft in the middle - whilst baked sweet potato (£4) and creamed spinach (£4) are every bit as good as they sound, and should be. Sauces (£2) feature an excellent peppercorn and a slightly less excellent béarnaise (a tad congealed), but very special mention must go to the bone marrow gravy - pint of, please bartend.

Desserts are for those with either tapeworm or an inability to appreciate just what destruction cooked cow on this scale is capable of, so don't trust anyone tucking into a phenomenally good sticky toffee pudding with clotted cream (£6.75) or an even better chocolate brownie with salted caramel ice cream (£6.50) – both of which are far too easy to finish.

The Drinks
The cocktails at Hawksmoor are almost as much of a draw as the food, and quite right too. Shakey Pete’s Ginger Brew (£7.50) is a mix of gin, ginger syrup, lemon juice and London Pride seriously worth marvelling at, whilst the Zombie (£16) is something for the birthday boy – three rums, falernum, absinthe, home made grenadine, grapefruit and lime juices with a Navy Rum float… that’s why you’re only allowed one. There’s a whole load of other juleps, punches, fizzes, sours and fixes, so you might want to get cosy at the bar – they’re worth exploring.

Wines are obviously skewed towards the red, with plenty of scope for keeping things affordable or throwing caution to the wind – a 1982 Chateau Petrus comes in at just under nine grand, which is probably around the mark where sense tends to prevail over drunken City boy ostentation. There’s obviously a fair few between though, with a well-priced and perfectly decent Rioja from Ramon Bilbao at £30 being a pretty flexible bedfellow to much of the food.

The Last Word
Improving on what many saw as the best steakhouses in London was never going to be particularly easy but it seems the guys at Hawksmoor are honing their craft. This might not be quite as nice a venue as Seven Dials, but the food might be even better.

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