The Goodman In'N'Out Tribute Burger

My slightly-tongue-in-cheek-but-actually-not-really In'N'Out campaign seems to have fans in unusual places. On an impromptu midweek visit with a friend to Goodman Steakhouse to try their house burger, restaurant manager Dave Strauss revealed he had a surprise for me. He and head chef John Cadieux had conspired to have a go at their own version of California's finest, and wondered if I would be interested in trying it. Seriously, a burger made just for me? How could I - how could anyone - say no?


First of all, excuse (as ever) the poor photos but the brooding, testosterone-fuelled atmosphere of Goodman after dark does not make for a good studio. You'll largely have to take my word for the fact that the heaving "In'N'Out Double Double tribute burger" was absolutely, filthily marvellous. With two excellent beef patties supported by a couple of slices of melty cheese ("sourced" from the nearest corner shop apparently) and a token bit of salad, this was as authentic a West Coast burger I've ever eaten in this country. Admittedly, competition in this particular sector isn't sky-high, but everything about it seemed right - it was a good size and shape, fit well in the hands and bubbled with juicy goodness on every bite. I can't think how it could be improved upon, other than to eat it outside under the Californian sun. Even the bun, dark and glazed and not bearing much of a resemblance to the original, did its job perfectly and not only kept its shape well but provided extra sweet notes.


Along with the burger came a portion of "animal fries", chips soaked in yet more Kraft cheese, thousand island dressing, fried onions and pickles, in another loving tribute to the Californian chain. These were also marvellous, and in contrast to the burger even looked scarily authentic, although after finishing off the former I didn't make much of impression on these. I thought about asking for a doggie bag, but I didn't want too many envious glances on the train home.


In all the excitement it was easy to forget the reason we'd made the journey in the first place - to try the normal Goodman house burger. Utilizing a bigger bun, and with no cheese to mask the flavour of the top-quality beef, this was also a tremendously good burger. A straightforward construction of a single thick beef patty, lettuce, onion and pickle, it was presented with the dreaded fat chips, although these were cooked well enough. When I'm Supreme Ruler of the Universe I will enact a law that makes it illegal to produce any fried potato product between the size of roast potatoes and normal chippy chips, but until then there's nothing I can do, sorry.

So yes, I really enjoyed my special In'N'Out burger, and can't thank Goodman enough for making this special and completely unnecessary effort just for me. But more than anything, it was a relief to know that my relentless eulogising of the West Coast burger isn't just romantic holiday nostalgia - there really is something special about the multiple layers of beef, cheese and salad that mark it as something quite different from everything else in London. I'm also happy to point out that it won't appeal to everyone - it's just so greasy and full-on that I can easily see why some would prefer the more undemanding standard. More fool them.

It's obviously no good me telling you to go out and try the Goodman In'N'Out tribute burger, because it's not on the menu, and I'm under no illusions about how ludicrously privileged I am to have tried it. But perhaps with enough pressure applied in the right places, the In'N'Out campaign may find unexpected success in the UK after all. Even a tribute to the In'N'Out burger is better than nothing at all. So come on, Goodman, are you up for it?

Both burgers were on the house, but the normal Goodman house burger usually costs £12.

Goodman, Mayfair

Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way before we go any further. Goodman, although it pains me to my very soul to say it, is better than Hawksmoor. A greater variety of steaks, their own ageing room and a couple of top-end Josper oven grills in the kitchen all combine to produce a dining experience which is as close to The Real Deal as it's possible to get in London, perhaps Europe. And not only are their steaks of sublime and unsurpassed quality, their staff knowledgeable and enthusiastic and the infrastructure solid, but they do all this in the centre of Mayfair at a price which even without any special offers or discounts can genuinely be described as a bargain.

Any restaurant - even any good restaurant - has some serious competition in this area of town. I started my evening, given that as per usual I'd arrived far too early for my reservation, in the Polo Bar, 2 minutes walk away on Conduit Street, and on the short hop to Goodman I passed Sketch, Wild Honey, Patterson's and Hibiscus, all big-name restaurants. But Goodman is not a Michelin-chasing temple of haute cuisine and doesn't pretend to be. In the fine US tradition, it is an accessible and informal space, looking at first glance an awful lot like a branch of All Bar One - masculine and rowdy and dark. There are no tablecloths here, no thick carpets and no cognac trolleys. It's all about the food, and the food is all about the steak.



David Strauss, restaurant manager and Keeper Of The Holy Ageing Cupboard, suggested a selection of 3 quite different steaks (all from master butcher Jack O'Shea) in order that we appreciate the differences between the producers and cuts. After very little deliberation, we agreed. What arrived was a large plate groaning with meat, sliced very handily into bitesize strips, Luger's style. My least favourite (brace yourselves) was the UK grass-fed sirloin, which was rather watery on the tongue and with not enough juicy fat, although perhaps I just got a particularly lean example. Better was the Irish Black Angus ribeye, with a deeper, richer flavour and some lovely bits of crispy charred fat. But the clear winner, the gold standard of beef, the king of cows, was a USDA Prime New York Strip steak (better known over here a porterhouse). This was extraordinarily good - a rich, minerally flavour combined with a startlingly tender texture which dissolved in the mouth. So not only is Hawksmoor no longer my favourite steakhouse, but I have the further ignominy of realising my favourite steak is grain-fed and flown in from the US. It's just not fair.


The sauces which accompanied the steaks were similarly accomplished. Black pepper was pleasingly fiery, the béarnaise was rich and light, the red wine and veal stock jus silky and moreish. Only the chips were a let-down, cooked well but in old or inferior oil and not very pleasant unfortunately. Creamed spinach was pleasant enough though.

I don't think I've ever leapt out of my seat faster than when David suggested a tour of the kitchen. Downstairs at Goodman a half dozen or so chefs toil near the heat of two mean-looking Josper grills which, Dave was eager to point out, are fired only using charcoal and not gas or electricity. Nearby was the ageing room, whose shelves were stacked with blackened chunks of seriously old meat. As blogger, author and fellow steakhouse groupie Simon Majumdar said, "That meat room is where I want to move when I leave this flat". Imagine being a Beatles fan in a room of original signed copies of all their albums, or a comic book enthusiast allowed to roam around a library of Superman No.1s. It was brilliant.





After all that excitement, and all that steak (some of which they kindly wrapped up in foil for me to take home, there was so much of it), all that was left was the bill. Bear in mind we'd had three glasses of excellent full-bodied Argentinean Malbec, a glass of Jurançon to finish, chips, spinach, sides, bread and more top-quality steak than we could even finish, when I tell you that the final bill came to around £50 each. That, while not being a cheap dinner, is stunning value for money when you consider the amount of food we'd eaten and the quality of the produce.

As you can probably tell, I thoroughly enjoyed myself at Goodman. I will continue to be a loyal regular at Hawksmoor, because after all it's still a smashing steakhouse and it's a lot handier for me in terms of location. Also - and Goodman are possibly missing a trick here - they have a great cocktail menu. But in terms of technique, service and yes, even value, Goodman currently have the edge over anywhere else in town.

9/10