My first visit to Pitt Cue Co a couple of years ago provided me with the tastiest pulled pork I’ve ever eaten. It was busy then – I think we waited for two and half hours in the tiny ground floor bar before eating – and it’s even busier now. We planned our visit rather wisely however and arrived at 5:30 for a drink, and then got a table at 6 which is when they start serving food – hoorah!
We were seated in the small downstairs area; it was dark, cramped, not much to look at and opposite the toilets – it should have been ghastly, but it really wasn’t. The buzzy vibe along with our friendly, and rather handsome, waiter made us feel totally comfortable.
We decided to start with two extras; jowl bacon (£6) and the lamb brisket (£7) which were both insanely good. I lost count of how many cooking methods each had gone through; confit, brining, smoking, grilling – all I know is it resulted in two pieces of incredibly good meat. The bacon was two thirds fat, yet it wasn’t at all sickly – partly due to the tangy apple purée accompaniment. The thin slices of lamb were equally as fatty but the meat just melted in my mouth – it was seriously impressive stuff.
For mains, the pulled pork (£11.50) served with pickles and a thick wedge of toast, was as good as I remembered, if not better. The soft and succulent pork was covered in a rich, sweet and totally moreish sauce. A side was included, and in an attempt to be a little healthy, I opted for the grilled leeks with Parmesan. They were pleasant but a little undercooked making them a tad chewy.
The smoked ox cheek (£16.50) was equally as wondrous; the meat, although being soft and gelatinous, retained it’s shape and texture meaning it hadn’t turned to baby food. The cheek was plonked atop a thinner slice of toast which had been soaked in beef juice making it really sticky, chewy and bloody brilliant. It was a seriously rich dish; totally addictive. We opted for a side of bone marrow mash which was easily the best mashed potato I’ve ever eaten. It was liberally drizzled with a meaty gravy too, making it taste phenomenal.
Only one dessert was available so we decided to share it; bourbon and coke sticky toffee pudding (£4.95). Sounds good doesn’t it? And it was. A slice of sponge in a sweet and sticky sauce served alongside a dollop of thick cream and a pile of salty crumble – crikey O’Reilly, it was completely and utterly faultless!
We left Pitt Cue Co about four stone heavier but I couldn’t think of any anywhere else I’d rather get fatter. We managed to beat the ‘lengthy wait for a table’ situation, but even so, food that delicious is worth waiting hours for. Brilliant meat, brilliant staff and a brilliant restaurant.
10/10
