Celebrating its one year anniversary this month, The Coal Shed in London continues to go from strength to strength. It opened its doors in Berkeley Homes’ new landmark development, One Tower Bridge, 12 months ago to rave reviews and was restaurateur Razak Helalat’s first London opening on the back of the success of The Coal Shed in Brighton. In fact, The Coal Shed Brighton was named one of the best places to eat in the UK! Such is the high quality of the steak and seafood.

That’s because the team here source seasonal, sustainable meat and fish, including their range of 35-day, dry-aged Scottish steaks from the North Highlands that are expertly cooked on hot coals (hence the name). The specials board features rare breed cuts and sharing fish, the latter of which (along with other fresh fish and crustaceans on the menu) is brought in from the south coast boats that deliver directly to the restaurant everyday.

Located on the river, opposite Tower Bridge, The Coal Shed seats 124 people with an open view of the kitchen where diners can watch the chefs at work. Naturally the emphasis is on the food and trust me, you’re really spoilt for choice.

To start we had the BBQ Jacobs Ladder – a cut of meat that was tender and succulent, and just fell off the bone. Delicious when combined with the kimchi slaw. More inclined for a seafood starter? Then try the Devilled Devon Crab on Toast – it’s devilishly good (sorry).

Mix it up with the mains too. A steak is an absolute must for any diehard meat lover, since it’s what The Coal Shed pride themselves on. I opted for the sirloin, which was incredibly juicy and with that cooked line of fat around the steak it offered maximum flavour in every bite. Couple this with beef dripping chips and it’s a definite treat for the carnivorous senses.

The Fire Roasted Lemon Sole is very tasty, albeit bony if you can put up with that. We were close to ordering a surfboard, but changed our minds at the last minute due to the generous size of the portion. So if you’re feeling very hungry and fancy some seafood, you know what to order!

Round off your mains by trying the chocolate coal, great little bitesized desserts.

The Coal Shed impresses not only on the quality and delivery of its cuisine, but also excels on location, service, hospitality and win. A must visit for food lovers in any type of social gathering.

For more information visit www.coalshed-restaurantlondon.co.uk