Have you Ce-cina this? London’s best restaurants aren’t just slicing and serving, they are making!
London’s dining scene has always been big on provenance, but a new breed of restaurants is taking things even further by curing, smoking, and ageing their own meats in-house. Curing and crafting in-house isn’t just about chasing flavour, it allows chefs to control the quality of their product, reduce waste, and celebrate nose-to-tail cooking. From silky slices of coppa and spicy nduja to rich pâtés and terrines, these spots are cutting, curing, and serving up some of the city’s best hand-made charcuterie.
Manteca
Manteca in Shoreditch makes all its salumi from scratch using whole British rare-breed pigs. These guys are serious about their sausage – their website lists 13 types, including the now-iconic house mortadella, a silky, pistachio-studded beauty that’s been on the menu since day one. There’s also prosciutto, bresaola, pancetta, speck and more.
Hide
Over in Mayfair, at the Michelin-starred Hide, chef Josh Angus crafts three different house charcuteries: goose with sage and fenugreek; Herdwick lamb with rosemary; and Saddleback pork with fennel seed and black pepper. Each one is cured, hung, and sliced in-house – delicate, perfumed, and distinctly British in spirit.
ALTA
New Northern Spanish grill ALTA, from chef Rob Roy Cameron, is producing what might just be our favourite cured meat in London right now. His cecina – think jamón but made from beef – is made using leftover cuts, coated in coffee, and air-dried until dark and complex, giving it a rich, smoky flavour. Cameron’s also turning out txistorra (a cured sausage similar to chorizo) and melting slabs of lardo for good measure.
The Jugged Hare
The Jugged Hare in Barbican might not be the trendiest of the bunch, but it’s long been a stalwart of the whole-animal movement – and they know their way around a carcass. The team here uses every part, from head to tail (HELLO, goat nduja). Right now you’ll find cured pork loin, bresaola and chilli salami on the menu, with venison and juniper salami, goat and walnut salami, speck, black-treacle pancetta and cured beef rump coming soon.
Zoilo
At Marylebone’s modern Argentine grill Zoilo, chef Diego Jacquet keeps things close to home, crafting his own cured meats using offcuts from the restaurant’s steaks. The current line-up includes saucisson sec, pancetta and bondiola (pork shoulder), all made on site and full of flavour.
Kerfield Arms
In Camberwell the Kerfield Arms has joined the charcuterie ranks, making pancetta, lardo, coppa and chorizo from the selection of pork they butcher themselves – all sourced from the best suppliers. It’s early days for their curing room, but the results are already full of promise.
In a city where provenance and sustainability have become the new luxury, as seen in our recent piece on the rise of offal on menus across the capital, this hands-on approach to meat feels like the natural next step. By curing and crafting in-house, these chefs aren’t just chasing flavour — they’re taking ownership of the whole process, from nose to tail, snout to slice. It’s a move that cuts waste, celebrates skill, and sets them apart in a crowded dining scene. Now pass us a plate of prosciutto…
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