Andy Mossack reviews Bricco e Bacco, a Sicilian restaurant that makes steak offerings you can’t refuse.
Charlotte Street in London’s Fitzrovia has long been the domain of dream makers. Advertising agency mad men and marketers who are always ahead of the curve, looking for the next great campaign to sell us something fresh. Long deal-doing lunches may be a thing of the past, but Charlotte Street still has some magic dust about it and plenty of deep pockets too.
A perfect location then for Bricco e Bacco, a Sicilian steak restaurant with impressive familial credentials and more than enough theatre about it to get the mad men really excited.
The Bergomotti family is a veritable dynasty of Sicilian butchers (known locally as carnezzieri) that began in Palermo in the 1930s and ultimately led to the opening of the family’s first Bricco e Bacco steak restaurant in the Sicilian capital in 2003. Fast forward almost two decades to find the London outpost of Bricco e Bacco run by family members Roberto and Giovanni and promising the same family trade expertise in sustainable high quality dry-aged cuts.
As soon as I walked in my memories of old school Palermo came to mind; wooden beams, leather jacketed menus, vast dry-aged joints, and the delicious aroma of sizzling steak.
But Bricco e Bacco goes further. Each joint is labelled with its origin, breed, diet and maturation period, the open kitchen a window into the world of a master butcher at work and Giovanni out front schmoozing the clientele with his knowledge of all things wine and steak. Diners are shown their on-the-bone cut prior to cooking before it is triumphantly brought back out sliced and sizzling on a smoking hot Himalayan rock salt block. Pure theatre, but make no mistake, this is a place where quality meat gets the respect it deserves.
We followed Guiseppe’s advice on sharing appetizers: two Sicilian staples; caponata Siciliana, which is fried aubergine in a sweet & sour dressing (£16) and maialino nero dei Nebrodi prosciutto, Sicilian black ham with aromatic apples (£17). A basket of three different types of bread with aromatic butter materialised. ‘Make sure you save some bread for mopping up the caponata.’ Warned Guiseppe, ‘it is traditional to mop, don’t forget.’
The caponata was exceptional. Diced aubergine cubes in an intense tangy dressing. The dark slices of prosciutto (not dissimilar to Iberica ham) were accompanied by chunks of beautifully caramelised apples. Of course, the traditional mopping took place with plenty of impressed nods from the waiting team. I always do what I’m told when it comes to indulging in cultural tradition.
It was all washed down by glasses of crisp and fruity Pieno Sud Bianco (£9). A perfect pairing and an impressive way to kick off this authentic Sicilian experience. Guiseppe gave me a knowing smile, he was clearly savouring the moment before the star of the show made its appearance.
The standard sharing steak menu was quite something. Six different breeds, from six different countries, each one a different price per kilo (from £140 for UK Shorthorn to £170 for Spanish Rubia Gallega including the bone) and beside each, a check list from 1 – 5 detailing the amount of marbling, softness and flavour along with suggested wines. As if this wasn’t enough to digest, two types of wagyu (Spanish and Japanese) were also listed, the Spanish wagyu at £280 per kilo whilst the Japanese came in at £60 per 100 grams which equated to an eye-watering £600 a kilo. Thankfully that one had a full house of checks for each tasting note!
We held back on the wagyu but dived into the deep end with a kilo cut of the Spanish Rubia Gallega, and were rewarded with it on a plate pre-grilling. Guiseppe again ‘we bring it out for the table on the Himalayan rock salt block cooked blue, and let you cook to whatever colour you prefer. But please, do not overcook as it will be too salty. When you have a slice ready, lay it over the bone away from the heat.’
This was serious steak business, and while we were processing all the cooking instructions, two glasses of delicious of Nero D’Avola (£10) ,Sicily’s famed red wine, gratefully arrived.
When the headline act appeared, it was quite the show. Guiseppe holding the meat sizzling on the rock salt block aloft like a cup final trophy, and then placing it gently between us on the table. Another quick briefing on the eating protocols and we were off and running, with an additional indulgence of a side of baby roasted potatoes (£8) and some broccoli (£8). This was quite moment I can tell you. It was an epic piece of top-quality beef. soft as butter and full of flavour. It more than lived up to the billing.
At the end though we failed another test. There is some more meat on the bone that simply has to be sliced away and eaten before the meal is deemed to be over. Seeing us floundering over how to finish off this beautiful cut of meat, Guiseppe put on gloves took out a knife and sliced it for us. ‘Even more intense flavour near the bone. It’s the best part’.
Suitably chastised we managed to devour the rest of it. It was a quite sumptuous carnivore experience.
But for non-meat eaters there are alternative dishes such as risotto with Jerusalem artichokes & caciocavallo fondue (£25) as an example, but for the avoidance of doubt, this is meat eating heaven.
Bricco e Bacco combines authentic Sicilian fare with superb quality steaks and wines to bring an eating experience I found hard to beat. Who needs one of those fancy Charlotte Street advertising agencies when you have a family run business with such deep-rooted passion for delivering the very best quality. I wish them every success.
Tell me more about Bricco e Bacco Sicilian Steak Restaurant.
Bricco e Bacco, 11-13 Charlotte Street, London W1T 1RH
T: +44 (0)20 7419 9682 E: booking@briccoebacco.co.uk
Bricco e Bacco is open Monday through Saturday 12pm-4.30pm and 6pm-10.30pm.
The restaurant has just finalised its trio of seasonal menus plus a vegetarian menu which will be available from 1 to 31 December.
