Yes, I know Flat Iron is a chain with fifteen branches across London and three more across the UK that are either open or set to open soon.
And, I know that I don’t normally to review chains because they homogenise the identity of cities at the expense of interesting independents.
But, it would be disingenuous of me to say that I never visit chains.
Crispy Dosa, Honest Burger, Greggs and Din Tai Fung are all places that I’ve been to in the last few years.
Furthermore, Flat Iron isn’t just any chain, so I thought that it was worth writing about.
Firstly, it’s founded by Charlie Carroll one of the co-owners of the Devonshire, the UK's most hyped pub. Whilst a table at the Devonshire is rather tricky to come by, it’s a lot more straightforward to visit a Flat Iron.
Secondly, unlike the encyclopaedic menus that many chains offer, Flat Iron have taken a single dish, the flat iron steak, and put it at the very core of their business model.
Their menu also eschews starters and desserts in favour of a compact selection of mains. It enables Flat Iron to turn tables very quickly and have a streamlined ingredient inventory, both of which must be important factors in the success of their model.
Knowing that we wanted something quick to eat before catching a Eurostar, I decided Flat Iron Kings Cross would fit the bill.
Arriving just before midday, there was already a gaggle of people waiting outside its doors to open. It’s a looker of a place with its exposed brickwork, wood-panelling and racing green paint; there’s apparent age and class belying its budget price point.
Despite the lack of starters on Flat Iron’s menu, as soon as we sat down a pot of warm, beef dripping scented popcorn arrived. It was still busy popping away in a machine behind us providing reassurance about just how fresh it was.
Whilst Flat Iron’s menu focuses on their headline dish (£15), there’s also a burger (£14), ribeye (£19) and wagyu steak of the day (£23). Furthermore, there’s a choice of seven different sides, all of which range from £3.50 to £4.50 and four different sauces for £1.50. I can’t think of many places where you can get a steak and sides for this kind of price, even in Cardiff.
From the concise wine selection, which is all available by the glass, we order a juicy Sangiovese (£9.50) and a smooth, red berry-packed malbec (£8.50).
Orders were taken within a few minutes of sitting down and our food arrived in approximately the amount of time it takes to cook and rest a flat iron to medium rare.
Presented on a cast iron and wooden slab with a miniature cleaver, it was a lovely looking bit of meat. With an excellent tenderness and good (if not the most deeply aged) flavour, it was a very tasty steak. It’s worth noting that Mrs G's steak was fattier and a bit smaller looking than mine.
Presented on a cast iron and wooden slab with a miniature cleaver, it was a lovely looking bit of meat. With an excellent tenderness and good (if not the most deeply aged) flavour, it was a very tasty steak. It’s worth noting that Mrs G's steak was fattier and a bit smaller looking than mine.
On the sauce front, a silky bearnaise honked nicely of tarragon whilst peppercorn delivered a warming meaty hit.
Aubergine, mozzarella and tomato bake (£4.50) was a melanzane parmigiana by any other name and it was a hot mess of deliciousness with a good ooze of mozzarella and compelling crusty edges.
Creamed spinach (£4) did the job but was the least impressive of the sides.
Silky smooth mashed potato (£4.50) was brought together by a pool of garlic butter, a lick of bone marrow and crunchy batter puffs. It was decadent stuff.
Whilst there’s no dessert on Flat Iron’s menu, our bill was charmingly accompanied by cleaver tokens that we could exchange for a swirl of Tahitian vanilla soft serve.
Served in a shatteringly crisp waffle cone and dusted with chocolate, the sweet and milky ice cream was a dead ringer for Joe's vanilla.
Stuffed yet relaxed, we were in and out of Flat Iron within just over thirty minutes, meaning there was no dash required to get to our train on time.
Flat Iron is certainly one of the best chains I’ve visited in a long while and an impressive business model to boot. With a branch set to arrive in Bristol later this year, I’m sure there’ll be a Cardiff opening in the not too distant future.
The Details:
Address - Flat Iron Kings Cross, 47-51 Caledonian Rd, London N1 9BU
