New people in town means one thing. Somebody needs a Sunday Roast, and I need an excuse. So we went to Hawksmoor for the English Sunday Roast.
If you’ve read my first Hawksmoor Sunday Roast post, you know this isn’t a discovery. This is a habit. I’m here pretty much once a month. At this point I should be paying rent. Maybe they’d let me hang a picture on the wall.
First, a Moment of Silence
Before we talk about the roast, we have to pour one out.
Hawksmoor rotates its menu, and this round they took off the Notorious B.E.E.F. Ironically, October 7 was the last day you could get it. Two dry-aged patties, special sauce, Velveeta, shredded lettuce, onions, and homemade pickles. It’s one of my favorite burgers in the city. It’s on my Best Burgers in NYC list. Solid, nostalgic, and exactly the kind of burger you think about on a Tuesday for no reason.
And here’s the embarrassing part. It was a bar-only burger, and the chef was supposed to hook me up with one in the dining room. But I never show up during normal business hours. I show up on Sundays. For the roast. Like a creature of habit. Like a man who has made his choices.
So the Notorious B.E.E.F. and I never got our proper goodbye. Biggie deserved better. So did I.
The Charcoal-Roasted Scallops
Before the roast, we started with the charcoal-roasted scallops, served right on the half shell. This is one of Hawksmoor’s classics. It started at their Air Street location in London back in 2012 and made its way across the pond, and I can see why it stuck around.
The scallops get roasted over charcoal, topped with breadcrumbs, and doused in white port, garlic, and tarragon butter. They come out super tender. Not rubbery. Not chewy. Just soft, sweet, and buttery, with a little crunch from the breadcrumbs on top.
And then there’s the butter left in the shell. You will want to drink it. I’m not saying I did. I’m saying nobody at the table can prove I didn’t. Pro tip: save a piece of Yorkshire pudding for later and you’ll understand.
The Sunday Roast: $55 and Worth Every Penny
Now, the main event. The Sunday Roast is $55. How can you beat that? You can’t. I’ve tried. Nothing in this city gives you this much comfort for that price.
It’s a large plate. Big enough for one person for sure, and big enough that the one person needs a nap afterward. You get three good, thick slices of beef, lots of gravy, great roasted potatoes, and vegetables. It’s healthy. There are carrots and cabbage. That’s fiber. My doctor would be proud. My doctor has not seen the gravy.
The Yorkshire Pudding Identity Crisis
Then there’s the Yorkshire pudding. Or the popover. Or the turnover. Every single month I sit there and forget which one it is. It’s a Yorkshire pudding. I know that now. I’ll forget again by November.
Whatever you call it, it’s crispy on the edges, soft in the middle, and built for one purpose: soaking up gravy. And scallop butter, if you listened to me earlier. It’s basically an edible gravy boat. I respect a food that knows its job.
The Slow Roasted Garlic Is the Secret Weapon
The most important part of the plate, and I will die on this hill right next to the Peter Luger’s one, is the slow roasted garlic. It comes out soft and sweet and spreadable, and you just put a little garlic everywhere. On the beef. On the potatoes. On the Yorkshire pudding. On your neighbor’s plate if they look away.
And garlic is healthy for you. Everybody knows that. So between the carrots, the cabbage, and the garlic, this was basically a salad. Ask Jerry. He became an expert a few hours earlier during the carrot cake research.
The Cocktails and the Nancy’s Wellington Comeback
The cocktail program, as always, is great. Hawksmoor knows how to make a drink, and the martini was right at home next to that much beef.
And I heard Nancy’s Wellington is coming back. Now, before you get excited, there’s no beef in it. None. At a steakhouse. Think celeriac, oyster mushrooms, and Camembert all wrapped up in golden pastry. It’s a Wellington that went vegetarian and somehow still showed up to the party looking great. I’ve had a beef Wellington or two in my day, so I’m very curious to see how this one stacks up. Yes, I will be ordering a side of steak with it. I’m not a monster.
The Birthday Crew
It was Jerry’s birthday, and we did it right. Monkey Bar for lunch, Golden Steer for dinner, and Hawksmoor for brunch to close it all out. Three great meals, each one earning its spot. Jerry had never been to Hawksmoor. Neither had Becca. So we(The Royal we Shannon got the resy and I will take the credit) had to bring them. That’s not a choice. That’s a civic duty. They both left converted, which is what a Hawksmoor Sunday does to people.
The Verdict
Hawksmoor’s Sunday Roast is still one of the best deals and best meals in New York. Tender scallops swimming in garlic butter, three thick slices of beef, gravy for days, crispy potatoes, a Yorkshire pudding I can never name correctly, and garlic that should come with a warning label.
I’m definitely coming back. I need to see what replaces the Notorious B.E.E.F., and I need to meet Nancy’s Wellington. And honestly, if you have any common sense, you should really check them out too.
As always, what do I know? I am just a fat guy from Brooklyn trying to survive the week, one martini at a time.
Looking for more NYC restaurant reviews? Check out my Best Steakhouses in NYC, Best Burgers in NYC, and Best Restaurants in NYC lists.