Weekly Review: American Delights x3
Whether fuelled by Tik Tok or good cocktails, the red, white, and blue can do tasty, too. Reviews of Dave's Hot Chicken, Angry Crab Shack, and Elaine's in Holborn.
American food is hot in London right now. Big openings in 2024 included Jeremy King’s The Park, with its take on New York. Serious bagels arrived in the form of Kleinsky’s and It’s Bagels. Passyunk Avenue and Texas Joe’s continue to go from strength to strength.
And then there are the big chains. Popeye’s brought its viral sandwich sensation to London about 18 months ago. Wendy’s rebooted in the UK at about the same time. Both seem to be doing well. Wingstop was doing so well that it just sold for £400m.
In recent months, the trend has continued and more places are arriving. So in this week’s issue, I decided to explore some of those new arrivals, and I offer reviews of three places which I think you’ll enjoy, even if you’re not feeling homesick for the USA. None of these are fine dining. They’re casual and range from fast to more traditional.
Dave’s Hot Chicken
Quick hit: An authentic taste of Nashville, perfected by a top chef in L.A., coming soon to every UK high street.
Details: Walk-in or takeaway. Piccadilly. £.
Restaurant website. More on Instagram.
Find it on Google Maps.
Hot chicken originated in African American communities across the south, but rose to fame in Nashville neighbourhoods following the Second World War. The definitive source, Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, was established in 1945, and in the 1970s, André Prince Jeffries perfected a new recipe that soon had the whole town buzzing.
Fast forward a while to Los Angeles, California. Chef Dave Kopushyan, building on his training at the French Laundry and other high end places, developed a new recipe and method for getting all of the spice while preserving moistness. He and some friends opened Dave’s in a parking lot in East Hollywood. A feature in Eater Los Angeles made it famous, and now Dave’s is expanding around the world, with investment from Hollywood A-listers like Drake and Shaquille O’Neill.
At the same time, Dave’s has struck a chord on YouTube and TikTok, as silly people blow their own minds with “Reaper” levels of spice.
When it opened on Shaftesbury Avenue a couple of weeks ago, there were long queues. Buzz abounded.
There’s always a danger when something great goes global that it loses the magic — and quality — of the original.
Dave’s London branch hasn’t.
I’ve eaten at Dave’s twice before, including once in Austin, and always enjoyed it. (I’ve also been to Prince’s in Nashville, so have the context of the original.)
Dave’s London delivers.
The chicken is genuinely excellent. I went for Medium spice. The balance was great. The chicken was moist. The breading was substantial without being too much. There was a slice of bright yellow American cheese on the top, which added something unexpected, tasty, and slightly naughty.
Mac and cheese was also very good. I’d have been happy eating it in a meat-and-three place in Nashville. The fries were nicely spiced and well made.
There are a million chicken joints in the UK. But Dave’s story, recipe, and experience make it distinctive. On the day I went, I arrived early to try to beat the crowd. That sort of worked. I only had to queue outside for about 5 minutes before I made it inside. But when I left, the queue had grown and, the security guy told me, had certainly reached an hour.
Dave’s has big plans. More than 60 locations are in the works for the UK. So get ready. It’s coming to a high street near you. As far as I’m concerned that’s great news.
And it can be for Professional Lunch. Dave’s offers catering platters that you can order for a function, and with the right group, it could be just the thing. It’s certainly a conversation starter.
Angry Crab Shack
Quick hit: Spicy, messy, and fun seafood joint great for a group outing.
Details: Walk-in. Leicester Square & Borough Market. ££.
Restaurant website. More on Instagram.
Find it on Google Maps. (Leicester Square and Borough.)
Angry Crab Shack was created by former NFL player Ron Lau, who wanted to pair the Asian flavours he loved as a child with tastes and seafood ingredients from the American south.
He built Angry Crab Shack around the idea of a seafood boil: A jumble of seafood and fixins’ are cooked and served together, usually by pouring them onto a table. No plates or cutlery. Just hands and fingers. It can be dirty work.
So there’s no pretence of fine dining at the Angry Crab Shack. Just roll up your sleeves.
The new branch in Borough yards is comfortable and big, with lots of space upstairs for tables and room downstairs for a pleasant bar. The cocktail menu looks strong, but the wine selection isn’t great.
The food is fun, well made, and pretty authentic. On my visit, I tried shrimp scampi, lobster crostini, and New England clam chowder. They were all darn good. The chowder was the best, with big, whole clams and creamy, rich flavour.
Like Dave’s, it’s hard to imagine having a serious Professional Lunch at the Angry Crab Shack, but it would definitely be fun for a group of colleagues.
And it’s good to have a decent seafood boil place given the sad news that London stalwart and authentic delight Decatur is taking a break for a while.
Elaine’s
Quick hit: Midtown NY cocktail bar vibes, with decent food, too.
Details: Walk-in. Holborn. £££.
Restaurant website. More on Instagram.
Find in on Google Maps.
Elaine’s is inspired by New York, and it aims to offer a range of Big Apple experiences under one roof. There’s a polished cocktail bar, a take-away focused deli, and a restaurant that aims to provide an “exceptional experience.”
It’s the sister of Americana, a “southern soul food restaurant” in Haymarket. I’ve never reviewed Americana, and won’t here, because it’s sadly not very good. The kitchen doesn’t really understand the menu, there’s no pretence of authenticity, and the space doesn’t really work.
Elaine’s is more successful.
I had a bowl sausage bites served with a little spicy, New-York deli mustard and some sauerkraut. They were a great bar snack, and I could imagine eating this dish in a bar in New York. For a main, I went for “Hackensack Meatballs.” I was surprised to discover that these were genuinely very good, like a dish of great diner meatloaf with mash and a wonderful gravy.
Both Elaine’s and Americana are projects of Stephen Less, who is described in the mainstream British press as a “nightclub owner.” That makes sense, because both Americana and Elaine’s seem well optimised for late-night traffic.
So is Elaine’s for Professional Lunch? If you’re in Holborn, perhaps. But it’s definitely worth noting as a potential spot for an after-dinner drink, should the need ever present itself.
Thanks for reading this week’s review. What’s your view on the American trend in London? Real? Growing? Or yesterday’s news? Let me know in the Comments. And please subscribe if you haven’t already.