meatup grill

We hopped south of the river nearly a year ago now and can safely say we love it. Heading under the railway bridge at Wandsworth Town is like stepping onto the high street of a quiet little town, far far away from the hustle and bustle of London. The road is dotted with cafes, butchers and sweet restaurants and we’ve just been gifted with a newbie; MeatUp Grill. With such a punny name The American and I leaped at the opportunity to try it out during the soft opening last week.

Located on the old site of my fav Moroccan restaurant, Doukan, I had high hopes MeatUp would live up to my expectations of delicious grilled meats, good drinks and a lively atmosphere. It certainly does this as upon entering, the restaurant sings with excited voices, chatty waiting staff and a relaxed vibe. The space has benefited from opening up a skylight, allowing the summer sun to pour on down through the twisting limbs of a climbing ivy (naturally this is fake to avoid any awkward allergic reactions).

The American and I were seated in front of the open kitchen with full view of the beast that sends all your food to smoky heaven. With the smoky smell wafting around we set to work deciding our plan of attack. I went straight for the burger as I’m a weird person and am slightly put off by eating from a bone, whilst The American went for lamb chops with a green sauce and roasted veg. We both got skinny fries on the side and gladly helped taste test all the sauces (fyi the bacon Bearnaise is excellent, as is the bbq). The burger was a banger; meaty, smoky and bursting with juicy flavours. As a side note it comes with a seriously good slaw of pear, celeriac and kale. Could have eaten that all day.

The lamb chops were wolfed down and might well have swerved my opinion of eating off a bone. A great benefit of sitting in front of the kitchen is that you can see everything off the menu. The ribs to share was the biggest thing I have ever seen and we both agreed we have to come back for them – I’m currently drooling just thinking about it…

Despite already acquiring substantial food babies we both got puddings; sticky toffee for him and poached strawberries with yoghurt and toasted hazelnuts for me. Both gone within seconds. A good enough verdict I’d say.

MeatUp is a welcome addition to the Old York Road scene and we shall certainly be telling our friends to hop on down. We’re particularly excited to hear it will be open ‘til late, satisfying the burgeoning young crowd that’s finding its way to SW18.

I’m off to Berlin tomorrow with some girlfriends so will be back with stories/food to share.

L. 

p.s apologies for the image quality, food is notoriously difficult to shoot from a phone.