CUT

CUT | Beverly Hills American Steak Restaurant in London

In 1949 Wolfgang Johannes Topfschnig was born.

In possession of a surname that even his own mother struggled to pronounce, young Wolfgang appeared doomed to a life of mediocrity – he would be the highly forgettable “Mr. Topfschnig”.

With Wolfgang’s father having left before he was born, things were not looking good.

7 years later and Wolfgang’s mother married Josef Puck who, in adopting young Wolfgang, mercifully bestowed on him a new name – one that was both intriguing and powerfully abrupt – “Wolfgang Puck”.

Inspired and empowered by his quirky new name, 7 year old Wolfgang immediately got to work on becoming the man he would ultimately become – by taking cooking lessons from his mother, an occasional pastry chef.  It was a mere 18 years later, having trained at some of the finest restaurants in France, that Wolfgang came to realise where on earth his name – and talent – would be most appreciated: America.

Jamie Oliver had barely been born by the time Puck had an enviable collection of successful cookbooks and restaurants already scored off his vast to-do list. Over the last 30 years Puck’s talent, and his celebrity, have been firmly established in cities across the world (his “highlights reel” including award winning restaurants Spago and CUT in Beverly Hills, an annual gig cooking for the Academy Awards Governor’s Ball, numerous film and TV appearances, and a whole lot of charity work).

But now, finally, he has returned to Europe in order to open his very first restaurant on this side of the Atlantic: CUT, at 45 Park Lane.

Mirroring the original CUT in Beverly Hills (which already has successful spin-offs in Vegas and Singapore), it’s a modern American steak restaurant offering everything from prime dry and wet aged beef to salads, pan-roasted lobster, plus sautéed and roasted whole fresh fish.

However given the restaurant’s name – and its possession of “the widest and best selection of beef available in London” – you’ll probably want to go for a steak.

Helping it down, it will come as no surprise that there are cocktails, including a negroni trolley (with one number aged in an American oak barrel), and a dedicated list of cognac cocktails. Oh, and there’s a wine list with bottles that range from a reasonable £35, to a punchy £8,000.

Which is also reasonable, when you consider that it’s from 18882.

NOTE: CUT is open daily for breakfast, lunch & dinner. You can reserve on their website here.

CUT | 45 Park Lane, Mayfair, London W1K 1PN

Enjoy eating out? Check out the Nudge’s guide to the best restaurants in London.