3/5 Jackie M. 4 years ago on Google
(3.5
stars)
Selfridges,
London’s
high-end
department
store,
has
a
restaurant
called
The
Brass
Rail,
who
have
been
serving
up
salt
beef
since
1966.
They
make
the
city’s
definitive
salt
beef
according
to
the
British
ex-pat.
I
was
chatting
with.
His
eyes
lit
up
at
the
idea
he
could
now
get
a
version
of
this
dish
right
here
in
Sydney.
Not
all
salt
beef
is
that
fancy
though:
since
1974
Beigel
Bake
has
basically
been
to
London
what
Katz’s
Delicatessen
is
to
New
York
–
a
rite
of
passage
for
any
self-respecting
tourist.
Their
chewy
bagels
stuffed
with
thick
warm
slices
of
perfectly
cooked
salt
beef
and
pickles
are
the
late-night
food
of
choice
for
cabbies
and
drunk
clubbers.
It's
their
recipe
that
inspired
the
SlyFox's
new
team
of
owners,
Benjamin
Lepke,
Brett
Strauss
and
Kerry
Wallace,
to
renovate
the
food
offering
at
this
longstanding,
late
night
queer
hang
in
Enmore.
It's
part
of
a
wider
venue
renovation
that
has
placed
colourful
oversized
hanging
lampshades
throughout
the
space
without
losing
the
pub’s
grungy
low-brow
appeal.
Now
what
sets
Salt
Beef
Beigel
apart
from
the
Jewish
bakery
original
is
here
you
can
actually
drink
beers
with
your
beigel.
(If
you’re
wondering
about
the
spelling,
‘bagel’
is
considered
an
Americanisation
of
the
Yiddish
‘beygel’
which
has
modernised
to
beigel
in
Britain.)
Seeing
some
craft
beers
that
I
hadn’t
tried
on
their
taps;
I
wrapped
my
lips
around
three
different
beers.
Brewed
in
Botany,
the
beer
I
liked
the
best
was
One
Drop
Brewing
Co.’s
XPA
($10/schooner)
-
a
bright,
hoppy
and
refreshing
pale
ale
with
tropical
fruit
notes.
If
the
weather
was
warmer,
The
Grifter’s
C-Boogie
($10/schooner)
would
be
my
go-to.
Brewed
with
juicy
green
cucumber,
this
German-style
Kölsch
is
cooling
and
refreshing
(but
you’ve
got
to
love
the
cuke).
The
only
beer
I
didn’t
rate
was
the
Marsden
Handcrafted
Lager
($8/schooner)
because
it
swamped
me
with
melon
before
getting
toasty.
Your
Salt
Beef
Beigel
($16)
is
served
in
a
basket
with
heavily
seasoned
waffle
fries
and
your
choice
of
sauce.
Trust
me
when
I
say
you
want
to
extend
the
British
theme
and
order
chip
shop
curry.
The
beigel
is
chewy
without
going
too
far,
but
the
real
object
of
beauty
is
the
thick
slab
of
salt
beef
(you
might
know
it
as
corned
beef)
that
it
contains.
It’s
tasty
without
being
too
salty,
and
perfectly
complemented
by
big
juicy
pickle
slices
and
mustard.
For
the
vegetarians
and
vegans
who
make
up
a
big
part
of
the
local
community,
the
chickpea-crusted
Cauliflower
Beigel
($16)
is
pretty
much
the
same
deal,
just
without
the
warm
beefy
goodness.
To
cut
against
the
additional
deep-fried
you
might
prefer
the
big
vinegary
hot
sauce
with
your
fries.
What
I
liked
about
these
beigels
is
that
they
make
a
change
from
the
burgers
currently
dominating
Sydney
menus,
without
getting
away
from
something
that’s
reasonably
easy
to
pick
up
and
eat
with
your
hands
in
a
crowded
bar.
Hold
onto
your
serviette
though,
you're
going
to
need
it.