... and a man must eat

Meat is meat. And you would think the difference between one steakhouse and the next is as obvious. But the next time you pop into a Meat Co. a meat-and-potatoes-on-a-big-plate type South African franchise that has popped up in a few places in town try the following experiment: Pretend it's your birthday.

Make sure the waiter finds out.

Soon you will find your table surrounded by jiveing waitrons, some shaking rattles, one banging a drum between his knees, others keeling from side to side in what seems to
be the beginning of a toi-toi dance while they all belt out the traditional Southern African tune Shozoloza.

On an evening earlier this week, by the time the staff at the new Burj Dubai outlet were doing their routine for the third time in as many hours, the high pitched ululation of a
staff member could be heard drifting through the night as the excitement evidently transported one staff member back to the Highveld nights of the restaurant's country of
origins.

There are ways for a steakhouse to distinguish itself without going the way of a fully-fledged theme-restaurant. There are no African masks on the walls at The Meat Co.

You'd search the menu in vain for giraffe's neck or crocodile steak. The background music ranges between Michael Jackson and Bananarama rather than Ladysmith Black
Mambazo.

But once you can look beyond the generic red meat portions of rumps, T-bones and rib-eye in this case imported from South Africa, Australia and the US, with the price rising in that order you find the nice touches of an understated ethnicity.

For instance, when your friendly waiter and the staff here are exceptionally helpful and chatty offers you the choice between a standard chip or mash potato side order with your steer, ask for some traditional South African pap, mushy cornmeal with a chakalaka topping that The Meat Co. serves somewhat raw, but deliciously grainy.

Or explore the entrée menu, something that many steakhouses limit to crumbed mushrooms and calamari options, but which here runs into more than a page of the menu.

The haloumi starter is worth it thick slabs of roasted cheese with somewhat sour vegetables, aubergine and peppers, all arranged into a pile that amazingly manages not to topple into a scattered mess when you tackle it with your knife and fork. Of course, the ubiquitous calamari starter is there as well – in this case in the shape of tasty deep fried nuggets worth biting into.

It's not really the kind of place one would expect Paul McCartney to frequent, but if you can manage to treat the non-cattle options on the menu as more than mere overblown garnish, there is even a vegetarian option somewhat vaguely described and a few seafood options. The simple fish and chips here is a rich hammour in a thick layer of tasty batter that drops of the fish when you cut it.

Try the new outlet in Burj Dubai which is refreshingly quiet on weeknights and where the waiters are quite eager to stop at your table for a chat, if you want.

They make an effort to let you feel welcome. There is no need to feel like cattle in a chute just because it's The Meat Co, after all.