The Bountiful Cow

With a pub cookbook to her name, and as a presenter on the BBC's Full on Food programme, Roxy Beaujolais needs little introduction. The proprietor of the ancient Seven Stars in WC2, she found another pub in Holborn and turned it into the Bountiful Cow, 'a public house devoted to beef'. Two floor levels are bedecked with pictures of cows, bullfights, cowgirls, meat cuts diagrams and posters of cow-themed films; jazzy but discreet music adds to an atmosphere halfway between funky bistro and stylish saloon. Ales are from Adnams and Dark Star, and the short wine list includes half a dozen gutsy reds. Menus are based on beef sourced at Smithfield Market and aged in-house. Starters such as garlic fried prawns and desserts like crème brûlée can top and tail the main event; a two-person steak board presents four half steaks on an engraved oak platter which can be bought (minus the steaks) as a memento.