We’re all for cultured gastro bars with blackboards filled with beers from all over the world, meat traced back to source at British farms, sustainable fish and fresh local produce but what kind of pub doesn’t have a burger on the menu? Honestly, one minute you’re in a charming Islington boozer quaffing bottles of Helle Weisse, the next you’re about ready for food and scanning the menu only to end up crestfallen when you see the closest thing to a burger is the onglet steak and chips.
Fortunately, not everybody likes to see a burger on the menu as much as this reviewer, which is why there’s so much love for the food menu at the Pig and Butcher. With a weekly changing menu that features the likes of beef hash or guinea fowl and creamed barley at prices around the £15.00 mark, it’s almost as much restaurant as it is pub. Not that you can swiftly gloss over the wet side of things. The food may be the main draw at this attractive, rustic pub on Liverpool Road in Angel but the selection of beers behind the bar is equally as impressive. We were slightly disappointed at the lack of draught offerings but looking over the 50 or so bottled beers displayed on the board we soon got over that. After sampling the Helle Weisse we moved onto cans of the Beavertown Gamma Ray before ending the night with a Partizan Brewery Pale Ale and forgetting all about the case of the missing burger.
Foodie types are well within their rights to brag about the food at The Pig and Butcher but the pub’s beer selection and general convivial atmosphere makes it just as good a place to spend a relaxed Tuesday night sampling the suds.
It’s no longer good enough to slap the “organic” label on a potato anymore, now we want to know where it came from, how old it is and whether it had a happy life up until the moment it landed on our plate. It’s a matter we take almost as seriously as retailers and restaurants do, ever eager to tell us about the age, preservation and origin of our food (35-day dry-aged hung beef from Hereford cattle is becoming the standard label at London steakhouses). In some cases, this is merely opportunistic marketing, in others, it’s genuine passion.
At the Pig & Butcher they butcher, cure and smoke meat onsite. The menu changes daily depending on what is available, particularly where fish is concerned; meats are sourced from small British producers and rare breeds like Iron Age pig are preferred.
The team in charge are also responsible for the very successful Princess of Shoreditch, and the manager has a background in farming. They’ve struck gold again here, as the food is pretty damn good.
Creamy goose rillettes are deliciously fatty, served with sharp cornichons and toast; the pork salmagundi, a salad with warm stringy pork, rocket and capers, is excellent, a harmonious dish where each ingredient speaks for itself without needing to be cloaked in dressing. A juicy slow-roasted loin of Old Spot pork comes with autumnal veg: swede, turnips and red cabbage, and skate is paired with the subtly tangy flavours of tomato stew with cannellini beans and salsify.
Desserts are great too. There is a pleasant caramelised lemon custard and raspberry pudding which resembles a crème brûlée, but we’re completely bowled over by the chocolate, vanilla and caramel mousse. Its name really doesn’t do it justice, as it doesn’t hint at the sumptuously rich aroma of the chocolate mousse and the citrusy notes of grated orange peel, and the pieces of smooth caramel sprinkled with flakes of salt.
In-keeping with the food, the pub’s décor is farmhouse chic, with tables made from planks of wood, and a bull’s head that hangs proudly from one of the walls. It’s a look seen too often in modern gastropubs, but here they practice what they preach. A three course meal for two with wine is around £90.
