Tonight we’re gonna feast like kings
by admin on Aug.10, 2009, under General
I’ve moved into a great new spot in Hackney and I’m really happy here. It’s an old converted pub called the Royal Oak, my buddy Brian helped me move keyboard guitar and amps in today, so I’m all set.
We’re now sat in his brothers Argentine Steakhouse ‘Buen Ayre’ on Broadway Market.
Geronimo the waiter has just put two bottles of cold beer ‘Palma Cristal from cuba’ in front of us, Brian orders the food, and a plate of Empanadas are set down on the table.
‘Tonight’ says Brian ‘we gonna feast like kings!’
Brian’s half Argentinian and half Irish, he’s an artist who works in furniture restoration and design. He reclaims things he finds in woods, beaches, or demolition sites and recycles them into art and furniture for bars restaurants and private houses. I been hanging out with him and he’ll stop us in the street and pick something up out of a skip. I’ll see some piece of old junk and he’ll see some hidden, unwanted Gem that he can turn into something desirable. He’s passionate about it ’see that door? I fit that door’ he points ‘the door by the charcoal fire, I find it in an abandoned theatre boat in Richmond, it keeps the grill man safe from the sparkles’
Two more cold beers arrive. I read the label, this time it’s ‘Quilmers - Argentinas favourite beer!’ We clink our bottles and Geronimo wheels out the Steak, A fillet and a rib-eye. Brian carves them both in two and we share a peice of each. On the side there’s beans, some salad, and a sauce I never come accross before, Brian tells me it’s ‘Chimichura’ I get him to spell it out and note it down on my nap-kin.
It’s true we do feast like kings. I never tasted Steak like this or this good. I can tell Brian’s proud of his bro’s success, he’s about to open a bigger restaurant in Exmouth Market, Farringdon. The Times voted him top-ten steak joints in the country and you got to book three weeks in advance for a table here.
We wash our steaks down with Red wine and toast ourselves. “Your place got a great feel man” says Brian “Great atmosphere you gonna catch many songs there”
Brian’s work can be found at www.ecospiritdesign.com
Buen Ayre can be found at 50 Broadway Market, London, E8 4QJ
