STEAK OF THE ART | FOOD REVIEW
Churchill Way, Cardiff. 029 2039 7284 / www.steakoftheart.co.uk
This section’s recent move into grading establishments’ atmosphere isn’t some random gesture: it has considerable bearing on one’s enjoyment of dining out. Nevertheless, it hasn’t taken long to show up the system’s inadequacies. Steak Of The Art, which opened in late January to moderate hype and is expanding from its initial Bristol setting, certainly tries to generate atmosphere. Primarily, it does so in such haphazard, cartoonish fashion, the tolerance-ometer swings right round, and it’s hard not to be charmed. Still, the score above tells you little.
The ‘Art’ of its name refers to the paintings for sale upstairs, most of which look like something Alan Partridge’s stalker would have on his wall; to the chainsaw-crafted wooden sculptures of characters from Charlie And The Chocolate Factory which bedeck our booth (the piped-in gurgling sound, which we eventually twig is supposed to be Augustus Gloop’s digestive system, is a… bold move); to the bespoke, retina-scorching upholstery. The ‘Steak’ refers to the foundation of their menu, is served in 200g portions and ranges from £14 for rump to £20 for fillet, reasonably enough.
My guest and I start with broccoli and stilton soup (him) and goats’ cheese salad (me). The soup is endorsed unreservedly. The salad could be called imbalanced, featuring one small disc of cheese and rocket in quantities usually associated with deforestation in the Amazon. Our steaks – his a medium rare ribeye, mine a rare sirloin – are both good: possibly closer to medium rare in my case, but certainly from quality origins. Sauces are £2 extra; sweet potato fries incur a £1 supplement and are best ignored in favour of the standard (excellent) chips.
Unoriginal but deeply satisfying desserts, a sticky toffee pudding and unusually light crème brûlée, get demolished – although not before I’m given the wrong order, and am then pumped for opinion after the first spoonful of the right one. Service is otherwise delightful, though, and Steak Of The Art is but a few weeks old. The food’s decent enough to earn it popularity, £70 for three courses and a drink apiece is fair, and the decor… well, sometimes you need a talking point to nudge conversation along.
words NOEL GARDNER photos YELP