Review: Meat & Shake, Ealing

By Tom Gatehouse
@tragatehouse
tomgatehouse.com

With any good business venture, things tend to grow. And with a good burger, size equals power. Meat & Shake, patty purveyors superiore, are ensuring both boxes remain firmly ticked, as they continue to push out roaring burgers at their new outpost just off the beautiful Walpole Park in Ealing.

Its common knowledge that the burger is back in a big way, on the street and on the plate, with even the likes of Tom Aikens and Gordon Ramsay priding themselves on their own versions of the global staple. With the varieties seemingly endless, the burger really is a runaway train, never to go truly out of fashion.

Meat & Shake is part of the new wave of fancy burger joints, and they’re clearly having a ball in the kitchen. Brioche-encased decadence such as the Truffle Shuffle (£8.50) are big hitters. Made with truffle mayo, Gruyère cheese, and a honey and onion truffle glaze; this burger is all about style, turning the classic towards the higher end of dining, but still with the unavoidably gorgeous mess.

There is also real theatre with their Smoking Bandit (£9.80), which arrives mysteriously underneath a clear dome. Removing said dome not only reveals a punchy burger full of smokey Cheddar, sautéed onions, smokey turkey bacon and smokey chipotle mayo – but plumes of white smoke to have heads turning in awe!

Distinctly copper with bare faced bulbs and wooden benches; Meat & Shake have gone for the whole stripped down look, with my companion and I seated by a very beaten up brick wall. I dig it, it does chill you out. As do starters of hot link sausages (£3.90), and olives and candy pickles (£3.50).

Smokey and plump, you do get a bang for your buck with the sausages, which came entwined and with pickles and mustard. The homemade candied pickles stood out, along with the slithery olives, with everything table-ways fought long and hard over.

Then, after careful consideration of the menu, it was time for the main event. A wrestling match for the ages. I had decided to take on the Luchador.

Weighing in at £9.50, the Luchador burger is a muscle-bound beast, combining the best of both American and Mexican street food. Salsa, sautéed onions, jalapeños, Monterey Jack cheese, nachos and a blob of sour cream with tomatoes and lettuce. All that was missing was a colourful mask. And Jack Black.

It had me on the ropes more than once, considering its size, but it invariably fell apart delightfully as I tag-teamed with a portion of the sweet potato fries (£3.20). It was a big win, and I might have taken on another had I not had the chance to help with my companion’s whopper, the Johnny (£8.50) – a rich mix of aioli, sautéed onions, creamy mushrooms and Swiss cheese.

A walk through Walpole Park was sorely needed after such a feast, discussing the other tempting options on the menu for another potential visit. Steaks, hot-dogs, classic mac and cheese; the works! They also regularly spice things up with guest burgers, with the curious Marmite Burger now making waves.

If you’re fighting a losing battle with a stubbornly persistent appetite, go ahead and introduce it to Meat & Shake. It’ll be quite the grand submission.

Meat & Shake
Address: 17 The Green, W5 5DA
Twitter: @MeatandShake
Website: meatandshake.com