beagle {london}

One of the great things about social media is that you get to find out about new places all over the world. Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, I’m always drawn to images from far flung places that look delicious. So, when about a month ago, I saw that David Lebovitz had Instagrammed an amazing looking photo of duck fat fried potatoes he had had in London, I thought “I’m there.”

Then I thought I was seeing double, since Penny De Los Santos posted almost the same photo from the same place. And soon there after Anissa Helou was Tweeting about it too.

While at first I thought it was just some random trending topic, I soon realized that all three were having lunch together at Beagle. Those fries – plus just about everything else they first photographed, then (of course) posted and then (I’m assuming) consumed – looked outrageous.

I finally got a chance to go there myself last month when we went up for Sophie’s graduation. In fact, this was the place she chose to celebrate the night of the ceremony. Rather than picking a formal, fancy place, Sophie chose low key and great food. She knows her stuff.

London was experiencing a heat wave, so the restaurant’s terrace was filled up with folks enjoying the uncommonly good weather and mid summer light which lasted till about 9:30. Instead we headed inside, into the brick arched dining rooms that are actually part of the support for the train tracks overhead.

Although one of our main objectives were those fries, we took out time getting there. A few expertly made cocktails, accompanied by what have got to be the plumpest fattest oysters I’ve had in a long time. “They just came in five minutes ago,” the waitress explained. She didn’t have to. They tasted that fresh. And went perfectly with my Hoxton Fizz, a mixture of vodka, cucumber, lemon and elderflower.

Sophie had a rich and luscious pig’s head terrine with home made gribiche sauce. And Domenico had a bowl full of cockles steamed with bacon. I’m not sure I’ve ever had cockles before, but they are the meatier and more intense tasting cousin of vongole. Perfect with bacon. And my grilled lambs tongue…well, since I’ve never had grilled lamb’s tongue before, I can’t honestly say it was the best I’ve ever had. But it was outrageously good, and almost too pretty to eat, sitting as it was amid a nest of striped beets.

For a main I ordered wild salmon, which was barely cooked and served with a crunchy watercress salad, boiled new potatoes and a dollop of rich, home made mayo. Domenico had lamb, served with what was the vegetable of the moment in London while we were there, samphire.

And of course a big dish of duck fat fried potatoes for the table. Did they live up to that first photo I saw on Instagram? Yes. Yes they did. Incredibly crisp on the outside, with a crust that was golden, brittle and oh so good. I think I would actually order a dish of them for my starter next time.

One of the main things I remembered from my first Twitter introduction to this place was the photo that David took of the Treacle Tart. And it did look tempting as almost every other table was ordering it. But since we had managed to fit in four courses plus those fries there was no way any of us could manage dessert.

And although Sophie has now graduated and is moving back to Rome to work at a restaurant consulting firm (the apple doesn’t fall far….) Emma is still in London. And, happy stars, her new apartment is just down the street from Beagle. I definitely see a slice of Treacle Tart in our future.