Tongues are wagging again in UK restaurants

Well, sort of. Tongue is a cut coming out of the cold: last fashionable in the 1950s as a cold cut with pickles, the perception of it has stealthily been turning full circle in the UK. Chefs from Phil Howard to Tom Kerridge have long appreciated this succulent, flavourful piece of meat and are finding sustainability-conscious customers increasingly open-minded.

Adam Heanen MD of butchers H G Walter notes that sales of tongue have increased substantially 40-50% over the last three years (each year). They supply restaurants and home cooks with ready brined, poached and peeled, even smoked tongues. Eating tongue may sound daunting yet it is rarely viscerally recognisable on the plate and not only does it deliver on taste, it has exceptional health benefits too.

_{Courtesy HG Walter}

Often thought of as offal, tongue is technically muscle meat. It’s extremely fatty, making it melt-in-the-mouth juicy and unexpectedly tender. No wonder Japanese chefs revere tongue and distinguish ‘moto’ (fatty tongue), the highest quality with a beautiful pink colour, pleasing firmness and juiciness; ‘saki’ from the tip to the centre of the tongue; and ‘shita’, the underside of the tongue which has a firm consistency and sweet, fatty flavour. Nutrition-wise, tongue is rich in omega-3 fats and a good source of iron, zinc, choline, vitamin B12 and other B vitamins. Here are some of the best restaurants to try tongue in the UK, whether you’re a first timer or a tongue-veteran.

Nessa

_{Tom Cenci}

Pressed tongue is a regular special at Nessa served with a green salsa with plenty of heft. Named in homage to the open-minded spirit of Vanessa Bell of The Bloomsbury set, Nessa sits within 1 Warwick Street private members club in a beautiful Edwardian building in London’s Soho, yet is open to all. Expect a deceptively simple menu that champions seasonality and plays on British and Mediterranean classics. Chef Tom Cenci’s signature dishes include the oozing molten delight of cheese and onion croquettes with grape mustard mayo; aged, subtly smoked beef tartare with bone marrow toast; black pudding and brown butter brioche; and celeriac carbonara.

Kitchen W8

For lamb fiends, crispy lamb’s tongue, pickled violet artichoke and harissa take a starring role on Mark Kempson’s autumn lamb taster series menu served 11-24 September alongside the à la carte at Kitchen W8 in London. Lamb specials include sticky lamb ribs, cucumber relish and smoked anchovies. These are precursors to slow-cooked lamb shoulder with piperade and garlic buttermilk or stuffed saddle of lamb with braised lettuce and Roscoff onions accompanied by pink fir potatoes confited in lamb fat.

Akoko

_{Photo by Food Story Media}

A staple of West African cuisine, tongue is served with sophisticated elan at contemporary African Akoko in London’s Fitzrovia. Tongue is treated to a Ghanaian suya marinade (peanuts and chilli peppers to the fore) finished over wood fire and served with an unctuous, deeply rich smoked bone marrow sauce. This is food that dazzles and surprises with fine-dining techniques honed by chef Ayo Adeyemi at The Fat Duck and Singapore’s Tippling Club. Thrilling variations on jollof are stalwarts on the tasting menu as is a hibiscus ‘trifle’ topped with granita with ravishing clarity.

Native at Browns

Smoked ox tongue is approachable served with wild garlic and caper sauce or accompanied by celeriac remoulade and beef dripping toast at ultra-ethical Native in Mayfair, where chef Ivan Tisdall is wholly committed to using every part of the animal. “Tongue is a great way to add protein and depth of flavour in a cost-effective way,” he says.

The Grill by Tom Booton at The Dorchester

_{Courtesy The Grill by Tom Booton at The Dorchester} 

Chef Tom Booton luxuriates in a redesigned modernist dining room with a glamorous, vast Murano chandelier at this iconic London hotel. He delivers thrilling twists on classic dishes whilst championing British producers. Treats include lobster thermidor tart and his take on Pierre Koffman’s squid Bolognese. Booton likes to add brined and slow-cooked tongue diced up into a phenomenal, ultra-rich shallot and bone marrow beef sauce to accompany beef fillet. His playful yet nostalgic theme carries through to desserts served at a separate pudding bar: there’s pineapple tart Tatin and a posh take on a Double Decker bar.

Parkers Arms

Renowned for hearty food that reflects its location in the Forest of Bowland, Lancashire, the Parkers Arms, helmed by co-patron Stosie Madi, offers an ever changing three-course à la carte menu, depending on the latest foraging outing. Tongue is a huge favourite of Madi: “It is intensely savoury and has a melting texture, and is invariably on the menu: served snail style with garlic and parsley sauce or as a cold cut with sauce gribiche to cut through the richness and a dressed salad,” she says. Feast on their legendary pies such as the intricate latticed creamy potato and Lancashire cheese pie. Desserts are nostalgic with a twist: pistachio slice is a sophisticated take on a Bakewell tart.

The Palmerston

“Tongue has a rigour to it and it is one of the things I most like to eat,” says chef Lloyd Morse of Edinburgh newcomer The Palmerston, housed in a former banking hall. Here tongue is brined for a full week to make it completely tender, before braising and finishing under the grill and serving with pickled onion, mustard and duck fat potato for a satisfyingly sturdy starter. Comfort and generosity take preference over good looks in dishes that showcase local suppliers at The Palmerston: lamb is braised with borlotti beans and peperonata and gooseberry roulade comes with a lake of fresh custard.

The Hardwick

Such is Stephen Terry’s devotion to tongue that he singles out grilled tongue on sourdough with celeriac remoulade, dandelions and pickled walnut dressing as his favourite starter on the menu at The Hardwick, close to Abergavenny, Wales. Whilst his devotion to regional foods is indisputable, the menu indulges his love of rustic Italian food with dishes such as puntarelle and barba di frate alla Romana and polenta gnocchi with artichokes, and Cashel Blue cheese cream with grilled treviso and chanterelle mushrooms, or Gower-peninsula-caught sea bass with ratatouille.