Beast London

As the elevator doors open, you are greeted with two main fridges – the Himalayan-salted meat hanging on your right hand side and the Norwegian king crabs (and a number of tamed lobsters!). We were allowed to open the fridges and smell the meat- the smell was not your average “meat” smell! We also called in Beast’s “crab expert” who professionally took out one of the king crabs and gave us a quick introduction about the crab and allowed us to “pick up” the crab before we were taken to our seats. Beast’s wooden benches, long share-able tables and those - elevated above the table – chirpily-placed candles above immediately induce the images of a typical Harry Potter-styled dining room.

The concept of Beast is simple: you can choose from their standard set meal or their normal menu. For their set price of £75 you get both the Angus Beef steak and the Norwegian Red King crab (from near the Russian border), not forgetting the substantial amount of sides and started as well as a choice of desserts. They also have an impressive wine menu for you to choose from, if you did not look at the menu, fear not, the wine fridge can be seen from the dining area.

It is not your average restaurant - you would go to Beast for the atmosphere it brings rather than the food – although our sole intention was for the King crab! You will be sitting next to or opposite other diners, this is to share the noise of chatter and to build on the experience of a feast.

Beast London is very transparent in what they do. I had to walk up to the menu to have a look at the menu and I was approached by one of the waitress asking if I would like a kitchen tour of how it's made. It's very different especially in the UK, where they don't cook live crabs. But it was a very new experience for me especially holding a live crab which happens to be heavier than my laptop. 

The dessert were simple, compared to other restaurants, however I wouldn't be surprised seeing as the mains were so fancy, having some simple desserts would make a difference and to balance out the meal. Although this restaurant was opened in May 2014, it is still very busy as I tried to make a booking via Opentable 4 days before the meal and I wasn't shown any table until 2 weeks later than my ideal date. Until I called up of course. But it is worth booking in advance as the restaurant got filled up with customers really quickly.

My partner and I enjoyed the dinner, in my opinion I think it's a place for gathering, for those who doesn't mind getting their hands dirty to eat. For me, it's my partner. I don't mind showing the messier side of me in front of him. But it is worth going back again. :)