clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Steak Chain Continues City Domination With Seventh Restaurant in Shoreditch

Flat Iron replaces Pizza Express in Spitalfields as its expansion continues

Flat Iron Steak’s London menu expands with Shoreditch restaurant on Commercial Street Flat Iron [Official Photo]

Flat Iron, the London steak restaurant chain, opens a seventh site on Shoreditch’s Commercial Street today, 1 July. It replaces Pizza Express, which closed in December 2018, with Flat Iron’s expansion joining the likes of Honest Burgers, Rosa’s Thai, Franco Manca, and Department of Coffee and Social Affairs in demonstrating how sensible scaling — and, sometimes, sizeable private equity investment — can enable growth in trying times for the London restaurant industry.

Flat Iron’s lean menu, competitive pricing, and ability to innovate according to location are in many ways object lessons for the reason why it thrives and Pizza Express struggles; London’s seemingly inexhaustible appetite for queueing for dinner is undoubtedly another boon to the group.

Little is new — aside from an apparently randomly reconstructed stove from the 1800s devoted to sticky toffee pudding, and a ‘beef tasting club’ — and it must be remembered that the likes of Byron Burger, Gourmet Burger Kitchen, and even Jamie’s Italian were once at this embryonic stage: investment deals with unrealistic opening targets, stagnation, and changing tastes remain potential pitfalls in Flat Iron’s future, which at some point must reach a crossroads between stick and twist. Its ‘workshop’ at the soon-to-open Arcade Food Theatre at Centre Point is one potential direction, but perhaps London’s appetite for single-item, affordable steak restaurants has a little further to go before it’s full.

London

, , England Visit Website

Franco Manca

20 The Broadway, , England SW19 1RE 020 8947 4368 Visit Website

Flat Iron

112-116 Tooley Street, , England SE1 2TH Visit Website

Honest Burgers

Unit 12 Brixton Village, Brixton, Greater London SW9 8PS +44 20 7733 7963 Visit Website

Pizza Express

399 Barking Road, , England E6 2JT