If you haven't heard of Belgo, it's an emporium for Belgian beer and food and there are five restaurants to choose from in London.

Playing by its own rules and specialising in mussels, fries and more than 62 beers, my partner Stuart and I visited the trendy Holborn restaurant for dinner on a Saturday night.

A converted Lloyds TSB bank, the casual eatery has a chic charm about it, with open brickwork, glamorous art work and hipster decor.

Memories of the building's former use can be seen in the basement, where the bank's safe has been converted into a beer cellar.

Belgo Holborn, London

The menu is just as off-the-wall with customize your own rotisserie chicken, steak, build your own burgers, fish and of course mussels - available in more than a dozen variations.

Seating up to 130 diners, it has a beer hall themed restaurant to the right and a drinks area to the left with a large bar in the middle.

The bar was buzzing when we arrived. We followed a welcoming waiter and took a table for two near the window so we could watch the London street scene as well as gaze over our fellow diners.

The drinks selection was huge and there was a menu just for beer.

Not the biggest beer fan, I had to sample one at least and went for a safe bet - Früli on tap.

With a sweet-tooth, I was impressed with the cult Belgian fruit beer bursting with luscious strawberries.

I ordered a pint, (£3.40 half and £6.70 pint) but it was fun watching others around me drinking out of steins of all shapes.

Dinner-wise, I went all out and ordered the mighty fillet steak (£21.95) and upgraded with half a lobster (extra £13.50) and spinach on the side.

Just half a lobster on the side...

Steaks at Belgo are all sourced from British farms and have been aged for a minimum of 35 days, so I knew I was in for a treat.

Served with either fries, 'stoemp mash' (potato creamed with carrots, savoy cabbage and leeks) or mixed salad, you can also add a sauce for an additional £1.25 if you fancy.

It being a Saturday night, the restaurant was busy but not heaving thankfully, so we were able to have a conversation and didn't have to wait too long for our dishes to arrive.

My 7oz fillet was juicy and mouthwatering. It had a warm pink flesh and salty crust.

Perhaps not as blue as I was expecting, nevertheless it tasted delicious, as did its lavish accomapniments.

7oz fillet steak

My partner was overjoyed with his dinner - ox cheeks slow braised in beer with chips.

At a very reasonable £14.50, the sauce was thick and rich, the meat soft and tender and the chips salty and crisp.

It was comfort food at it's best and he licked the deep bowl clean.

Ox cheeks slow braised in beer with chips

Unsurprisingly, the dessert menu focused on sweet Belgium waffles and crepes (£5.95) and like the burgers and mussels, it's a case of personalising your own to suit your taste buds.

Freshly cooked on site, you can top yours with dark or white chocolate sauce, or blueberry compote plus add a scoop of indulgent dairy ice from the likes of Belgian Chocolate, vanilla, honey and ginger, strawberry and clotted cream or salted caramel.

Persistent to try something even though our tummies were stuffed with beer and meat, we simply went for three glorious scoops of ice cream to satisfy our sweet craving.

If you're looking for humble cooking, a great choice of drinks and a cool London vibe, book a table at Belgo. You won't be disappointed.

The bar at Belgo

Factbox:

Price: Mains start from £11.50 each

Address: Belgo, Kingsway, Holborn, WC2B 6TD

Opening times: Sun-Wed 12pm–11pm, Thurs 12pm-Midnight and Fri-Sat 12pm-1am

Telephone: 020 72427469

Website: belgo.com

Dress code: None

Nearest tube: Holborn

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