Haymarket Wine House: bringing French Bistro-style steak-frites and vino to London’s West End

London’s West End is a constant dilemma when it comes to selecting somewhere to eat, especially if you’re indecisive, hungry and without a go-to plan. Well, fear no more because if you like steak and wine, we’ve found the place for you. Haymarket Wine House is located next to Her Majesty’s and the Haymarket Theatres, making it an ideal pre- or post-theatre destination. Serving a diverse selection of wines from across the globe, alongside a simple French inspired menu, this is a place where you can enjoy good food and wine at any time of day.

The restaurant has been divided across two floors, with the downstairs area available for hire, making it a prime cut (excuse the pun) spot for parties and private functions. Expect wine tastings to be hosted here too from choice suppliers. Up to 50 guests can be hosted downstairs, so worth bearing in mind.

Hands up how many people visit a restaurant and get stuck on what to order because there are just too many good choices on the menu? I’m definitely guilty of this, so it was a blessing to know exactly what you were in for here. You simply need to choose the wine (the staff are good at helping out with this), the way you’d like your steak cooked, which sauce to accompany it and which sides you’re having. Simple. And priced at a very reasonable £10 per head, it’s a money saver for Central London.

Using the tenderest cuts of beef, their specialty cut is the Butlers’ Steak – also known as the Flat Iron or Oyster Blade – which is a cut of steak with the grain from the beef shoulder. I always prefer peppercorn sauce with my steak, so that would be my recommendation, though they do also have Béarnaise or signature House Secret Sauce as alternatives. Sides include creamed spinach, green beans and home-cut fries with rosemary salt or parmesan. Get all of them, in my opinion, you won’t be disappointed. The creamed spinach in particular is a must.

During the day, the lunch menu features the restaurant’s signature burger: a colossal double rare breed dried aged burger, topped with smoked crispy pancetta, cheese, rum flavoured BBQ sauce and lettuce. A vegan burger with black bean quinoa patty, vegan cheese and teriyaki glazed pineapple is also available, alongside Melanzane aubergine top with vegan parmesan for those who want a non-meat dish.

As the name suggests the Haymarket Wine House takes pride in their vinos on offer. Serving full-bodied reds, crisp and fruity whites and subtle blushing rosés, the team has handpicked a range of grape varieties from Europe and beyond. Delicious yet affordable (from £7 by the glass), the wines are available by the glass or bottle. For the experimental drinkers however, I’d really go for the Wine Paddle. It features three different types of wines from smaller vineyards; the staff will test you on this, so have bring your A-game in taste and smell to work out the grape variety and country it’s from.

Less stuffy than regular wine bars, this informal yet informed wine bar has 125 plus wines on offer, meaning there is always an incentive to return. An accessible meeting place that celebrates life’s great joys: good food and wine, as well as a great place for events, its arrival to Theatre Land is very welcome indeed.

For more information, visit www.haymarketwinehouse.com