A diner who sampled David Beckham's go-to pie and mash establishment delivered a single-word assessment. Content creator Peter Green made the journey to Tony's Pie and Mash to discover what draws the former England skipper back time and again.
David, 51, is reportedly proud of his East London roots and has previously been photographed bringing his son Romeo for a meal at the Waltham Cross establishment. Peter, who goes by GreenoEats on social media, opted for the pie, mash and liquor—a traditional parsley sauce—alongside pie, mash and gravy.
His total came to merely £17.45, which included a cup of tea and pudding. Peter chose to start with his pie and liquor, adding chilli vinegar and black pepper. Sampling the mash, he commended it for being 'good and thick' while avoiding any 'lumpy' texture. 'That pepper and little bit of chili vinegar, that hits the spot, it really does hit the spot,' he noted in a video.
He quickly moved on to the minced beef pie. Peter remarked: 'Comfort food at its finest. The liquor has that lovely parsley taste, it's got the kind of thick...it's a bit gelatinous the sauce, kind of gloopy, but the flavour of it just works.' Upon reaching the beef mince pie, he offered one straightforward verdict—'phenomenal'.
After trying the liquor, Peter proceeded to test the gravy, comparing the sauce options to a north/south divide. Following his meal, he commented: 'That's a really nice, rich, flavoursome gravy that. It's really thick, a similar consistency to the liquor, it's got a really good flavour, like an onion gravy without the onion in it. If you got that in a chippy, you'd be really happy.'
Peter described the choice between liquor and gravy as a 'tough call' when pairing either with his pie and mash. The content creator rounded off his meal with a school cake and custard, calling it 'proper traditional grub'. He said: 'The actual quality of the pie and mash was really good. The pies themselves, lovely and soft on the bottom, crispy on the top, you can actually ask for more burnt ones as well, if that's your thing and you want it really, really crispy, that burnt flavour no problem.'
Deliberating over his preference between liquor and gravy, Peter concluded: 'Overall, I think I preferred the liquor, it just adds a little bit more lightness to it. The gravy was great, that's the sort of thing I would probably be more likely to make at home.'
Former Manchester United star Sir David isn't the only famous face to have enjoyed a trip to Tony's Pie and Mash either. Television hardman Danny Dyer has previously spoken fondly of the shop, which also caters for his beloved West Ham United. When quizzed about his favourite restaurant by Rolling Stone, the Rivals star said: 'I'm very much a basic man so it would be Tony's Pie and Mash Shop from Waltham Abbey. I have a double double, loads of liquor, laced with chili vinegar, that's important, and white pepper. It's a lovely restaurant in Waltham Abbey and it hasn't changed for like 100 years. It's the same tiles and little benches. There's nothing quite like a f*****g pie and mash to start your day.'
