The Meat Locker in Belfast

Deanes saved our work Christmas dinner after another venue let us down at short notice. Communication with Laura and the team was seamless in the lead up to the night and on the night things couldn’t have gone better. We had the private dining area upstairs. It was perfect for a work event. Dedicated bar and staff were excellent and the food was exceptional. So good that we have already booked again for Christmas 2025!

Food just ok and it's very noisy

Unfortunately I had the displeasure of meeting possibly the rudest waiter/barman ever here. The way he behaved towards myself and my grandmother actually floored me. Clearly he doesn't like his job and his appalling attitude reflects very poorly on the restaurant. Sadly that's why I've given such a low rating, his attitude ruined what was otherwise a lovey afternoon.

First time going to here and can honestly say was incredible 👌 Michaels food is some of the best ive ever had and the atmosphere was amazing and the service was Incredible We went for my wife’s birthday and she fell In love Thank you 👍

Had a wonderful dinner here with friends, starter was Pai tai soup which was amazing it had a slight kick to it with the peppers. Main dish was fillet steak cooked to perfection and chips, veg and onion rings 👌. Dessert was egg nog crème brulee, delicious, this was all washed down with a few cocktails. Overall food and service was outstanding , expensive but worth every bit 👍

Terrible! Ordered the veal chop and my wife had the duck. We were 'warned' that both dishes came 'pink'. Duck fat wasn't rendered down and was uneatable. Veal was well done and tough. We could finish our meals. Waiter wasn't bothered. They had the cheek to put a service charge on the bill. All we got was - 'Well, I'll give your feedback to the chef'... A plus note would be the haggis starter - absolutely delicious! It should also be noted that it's the only place that does the lovely Black Elysium and Calvados!

Amazing meat! Everything was very nice and the Brazilian knife to cut the meat, was even better!

Private Room Dining - impressive location and food by Michael Deane himself 👍

Rude staff and I won’t be back.

Steak was good but everything was way too salty. Service was good and I didn't leave overly disappointed but doubt we would ever go again unless they cut back on salt. Anyway not a disaster but will go somewhere else next time.

First time visiting last night and what a fantastic meal. Most of us went for the pre-theatre menu which included a steak option and despite it being a cheaper cut of meat it was honestly cooked and seasoned to perfection. Also the beef dripping chips were beautiful and the sauce that came with it was delightful. I also ordered onion rings as a side and they were arguably the star of the show. If I had one criticism I wasn't as bowled over by the Tiramisu dessert which seemed to lack a little alcohol kick but it was still very nice. Service was good and the decor was great. Looking forward to coming back with my parents next time. They will be pleased to try it.

Really great steak restaurant. The restaurant is lovely, the staff were very friendly and helpful and the food was excellent. The only disappointment was the gents, which was cramped with leaky toilets and, admittedly right at the end of the night, needed a clean

Went to the Deanes at first but there was no one at the reception, so we stood for like 5mins before someone came and told us we were booked for the Meat Locker so we had to leave. Got the Meat Locker- warmer reception, nicer ambience! The service was a solid 10! They were rolling out dishes from the kitchen really quickly and always checked if we needed anything, at different times! The pork breast starter was so good! The steak was nice as well but I didn’t like the sauce that was recommended. My mock tail was really nice but the ice cream was mid. It was too sweet so I barely touched it. Overall, it was a great experience and I do recommend!

Food was 5 stars. Beautiful layout. Excellent service. Beer was cold too

Visited for Christmas works do. The meal most certainly had the wow factor, well done guys most impressed and I didn't go in with the highest of expectations but you most certainly impressed will be back and would highly recommend others to go try for a high calibre meal.

Wow! The meal was beautiful and so was the service. For the price, I’d say the portions were generous! The service was incredible, at no point were we left thirsty or with dirty dishes on the table. Very attentive and happy staff which always makes the experience that much more enjoyable. Menu was fab, everything truffle.. right up my street. The host was very knowledgeable about bars to go to afterwards. He was very kind (and so was our server) and directed us to some other great places! The decor was so interesting to us, very 2000’s posh compared to Dean’s next door. All part of the experience :) Thanks!

We were in Deanes meat locker on the evening Saturday 20/7/24 the steaks were sublime, perfection , mouth watering. Lovely place, great staff , great service . Can’t wait to return

Excellent food. And service. Well worth the money. Best Steak I've had in a long while.. Highly recommend it 👌

We had seabass and fish'n chips. Food was excellent but we were completely ignored by the waiters. They were busy attending to the tables with many guests probably more interesting than us. We had to ask for everything throughout the meal. Never felt so overlooked in any place.

Lovely food as always. The revamped love fish and Epic into Deans is well done and much more spacious so you don't feel on top of each other.

Firstly put us in a table by the door when I asked for a good table as celebrating. Then forgot starters. Most Mains arrived cold. Reheated so looked unappetising . Steak on bone unimpressive in size and flavour. Lovely staff poor execution. Spent nearly £400. We got 2 free deserts for inconvenience.

Great menu and delicious food. The burgers are brilliant and the pork belly starter delicious. A bit pricey but well worth it for the quality. Will definitely be back.

In truth, we ate at mrDeanes which adjoins the Meat Locker. Really good lunch, from the very welcome Aperol Spritz to the liqueur coffees. He chose the Ardglass scampi and I the scallops, followed by lemon panna cotta with strawberry drizzle cake. All excellent value for money. Staff very friendly and efficient. Glad we booked as the place was buzzing late Friday afternoon!

Just dined at the newly opened restaurant tonight, Sat 14th June. It was first class. The service was excellent. Think the atmosphere in the second room on the left needs some attention. It’s a bit like an office with the flooring and lighting a bit stark compared to the main restaurant space which is cosier and more inviting. That said in our space they had an excellent singer and guitar player. He was first rate, just a shame he was playing to an empty room given his talent. Think this all needs a bit of tweaking to get the right vibe but he def should be a regular booking. Thanks so much and better than where we ate on our first night in Belfast which was very poor. Good luck with your new venture Mr Deanes. You have got so much of it right 👍

We were actually at the new Mr Deans. The stars says it all. As always. Excellent. Worth every penny.

Not my first time (or even second ) here and I’m pleased to say it remains both fabulous and great: JUST GREAT! Impeccably presented dining tables, creative menus, inviting and welcoming interior. Excellent menu and choice; gorgeous and tasty food, cooked with impeccable precision and flair. Front of house provides the attentive service which accompanies and enhances the excellent food provided by Michael Deane at this restaurant. Absolutely nothing to fault with our afternoon experience. Really outstanding.

What a beautiful food and friendly welcoming service. We had dinner today and we ordered padron papers, scallops with cafe de Paris sauce, chargrilled squid and bread as starters. For main, we ordered lamb cutlets and pork chop. OMG! What a majestic grills. All well prepared and greatest passion in the food is oozing out from every bite. Wine and Irish whiskey (yellow soot and green spot) is fantastic. Best of all, out of the world service by our server, I think he is one of the leaders, is unparalleled. Thank you very much.

Had the delight of going to Deane's Meatlocker today for dinner with my husband and son. Great menu, absolutely delicious food, fantastic and attentive service and lovely drinks. The children's menu is also excellent and very affordable (with big portions for ever-hungry growing boy!). Lovely atmosphere with just the right volume of relaxing background music too! Such a treat! We'd highly recommend and look forward to returning! Thank you to all the Deane's team.

After the initial disappointment that there were no remaining oysters, this proved to be a good venue. The star obviously had to be the meat. My wife had a veal steak that she thoroughly enjoyed. My rump steak was fine, though I was surprised that the waiter only gave me options of pink or well-done!

All 6 of us enjoyed our lunch. The other 5 were most impressed as I'm the only one who has been before!

Booked a table after reading a stellar review in the Guardian and Deane's did not disappoint. Fresh light oysters to start. Absolutely brilliant flavoursome fillet for me, done exactly as requested. Delicious food and drinks with polite, attentive and friendly service. Highlight of a grrlz weekend in Belfast

We had four different seafood/fish dishes. All were creative and delicious.

Great experience today, superb lunch with generous portions and top class service. The pork belly starter was to die for and the steak sandwich was the most tender steak and so tasty. My wife's salmon was perfect and the espresso martinis to finish were excellent. This restaurant in my opinion is one of the best in Belfast, a great selection of menus from which you can mix and match means that lunch can be very reasonable or more expensive if you wish - the choice is yours. It never disappoints.

I've been there many times. Today was just the same service and food good. The only problem I had was receiving the bill but with a 10% tip charge. What if the food and service was not up to speed. Michael don't like paying for something I didn't receive. I usually leave a good tip but in this occasion I had no choice.

We dined at Dean's Meat Locker with about twenty people to celebrate my daughter's birthday. Service was excellent and the food was next level. Cost was surprisingly reasonable. Highly recommended.

So, it's always perplexing when you are confronted with a translation issue. Whether you are expecting nice crispy bacon with your eggs and the plate has a large slab of ham instead of what you now realize should be called "streaky" bacon, or perhaps what you were expecting in your country fried chicken sandwich is a chicken breast deep fried with a buttermilk breading, but turns out to be chicken "tenders" stacked on a bun, these culinary stumbling blocks can be a bit disappointing. Such is the case for what the UK consider the ribeye steak. In the US a $50 bone-in ribeye would probably be 3 inches thick with a beautiful charred exterior and (hopefully) medium rare center. But here in the UK a £45 bone-in ribeye will get you a delicious 1/4 inch (that's about 6mm) steak that just seems anemic. It was very tasty and cooked well (medium rare), but a 6mm steak, how can you even tell? And at £45 it was pretty underwhelming. And that leads me to my overall review of Deanes Meat Locker. Very expensive, and absolutely impeccable service, but I'm guessing you're paying for the food not just someone pouring you wine, so that food needs to be equally exemplary and unfortunately Deanes Meat Locker is lost in translation.

Went with my wife and our kid for her birthday. The food and the attention were superb. Definitely recommend.

Wandered in by chance and found an absolute gem. Food was divine and everything/ everyone were excellent. We shall return. Highly recommended.

This is the 5th time ive been to Deans i loved the food and service the last 4 visits it was perfect, this time it was ok they forgot to get me a drink ,and lifted my starter before i was finished the food wasn't as perfect as it was previously this is the reason for 4 stars..

Food was fantastic, service was appalling, we might as well have not been there. Other than our orders taken and plates set in front of us we were ignored the rest of the evening. Sitting nearly 30 mins with empty plates while waiters/waitresses came and went at every table around us multiple times. We then went more time before we were asked did we want dessert which we declined. They then had the cheak to charge us a tip for lifting a plate off the table. The waiter at the table next to us was never away from them and couldn't do enough for them. Like I said, food was fantastic but not much else to say.

First class. As a sometime solo traveler it is hard to be taken seriously by a fine restaurant. Many will not seat you (in Glasgow i had such an experience a few years ago) . From start to finish, the experience here @ Deanes Meat Locker was top notch. Seating, when the maître'd saw I was trying to read , he adjusted the ceiling light to help. The offerings of Irish whisky, which I hadn't ever tried was wondaful. The suggestion to drink it neat even better. Then there's the food. I love cooking my own steak on a charcoal grill @ home. But something drew me in here. And the steak I ordered was offered medium rare- and one of the finest steaks I have eaten in a restaurant! The accompanying fries were hot crispy and tasty, The service unobtrusive and professional Deane's is highly recommended on your visit to Belfast. It was excellent value and very comfortable.

Mediocre food, over priced. Very underwhelmed.

Good food, a bit pricey and a bland atmosphere though the service was great

The food here is really excellent. Recommended for a special meat lovers night out. Lovely atmosphere and the service is great.

Excellent food, staff extremely knowledgeable and friendly. If anything it's only gotten better ! Marvellous place.

We went here on a recommendation and local views that if you want ‘good food’ to go here. We went on a Saturday night and got the last unreserved table. We could see walk ins being turned away all night so I would recommend booking. We ate pardron peppers and breads, rump steaks and garlic mushrooms and the home made ice cream for dessert. The food was pricey, but incredible and we would definitely visit again. The steak particularly was cooked to absolute perfection, so tasty! The gentleman on front of house was incredibly welcoming. We felt absolutely no time pressure to give up the table even though they were turning people away, we were left to casually enjoy.

Really enjoyed a visit here a few weeks back, we completely overdid it on the food but with a menu that good it's hard not to. Highlights were of course the steak, but also the pork belly, scallops and bitterballen. All paired with one of the nicest bottles of red I've ever had, a special at the time. Its expensive but you get what you pay for.

Felt like this reatuarant has had its day and now it's just not worth the money anymore. Scallop starter was the most expensive starter on the menu and the portion was so small, it almost seems like it was 1 scallop that had been cut into 3 pieces. Foie gras came on a plate bigger than your head with 1 singular piece of toast which ulitmtely just looked comical. If you're going to get anything here the korean pork belly or any of the steaks are wonderful, really flavourful and worth the price tag! However, everything else was just very dissapointing. Rich dishes with nothing on the plate to help cut through or balance this, overcooked burgers with poor qulity meat and parts of dishes at completely different temperatures on the plate. The staff were friendly and attentive, but orders we made kept getting lost and at one point we were waiting for 25 minutes for 2 drinks (wine and beer - I could understand to a certain extent for cocktails) and had to flag down the wait staff more than once to find out what was going on. Last but not least, the bathrooms were dreadful. If you're spending a lot of money in a restuarant with the prices they have, the last thing you expect is for the bathroom to smell like one of those self cleaning public ones. We were assured by staff they were cleaned regularly and they were very apologetic, but the overwhelming smell of bleach and wee were horrible. I really hope this was just an "off" night for them, but if this is the case every time then I don't see any point going back for dinner there.

Despite paying over £300 we were asked to vacate our table as there were customers waiting for it. There were no people waiting!!!! Glad I won't have the opportunity to go back😡

Despite paying over £300 we were asked to vacate our table as it was needed. There were no customers waiting!!!!! Definitely won't be back, can see why they are closing😡😡😡

Fantastic dining experience. Servers were friendly & not overbearing. Husband had the burger & I had Sweet potato fries, with Thai fish cakes. Both were delicious. Would definitely recommend & can’t wait to go back. Keep up the great work guys.

Ribeye was gorgeous, lovely duck starter too. Excellent rage of wines and drinks to choose from! Definitely try make a stop if you’re in the city! They managed to accommodate us with no booking on a Saturday in December!

Lovely people and amazing food !!!

Unbelievable- was so sad lisburn road closed down but honestly, I'll travel to the city centre for this. Best food in NI

We went for dinner with colleagues from work. The place had a lovely atmosphere, busy but not noisy, really nicely lit, and plenty of space between tables. A few at the table had starters, which were ok The time between starters and main was slow, but that was probably because the waiting staff took a long time to clear the table. The main course came out and was put down at the table and the waiter just walked away, didn’t ask if we needed anything else and didn’t come back at all to ask if all was ok during the meal. The desserts were a little bland and didn’t seem to have the same amount of pride taken in the appearance as the main course Ordering drinks took ages, we had almost finished the mains before the wine came to the table. Lovely food, but slow front of house staff let it down.

Excellent restaurant de viande, j'ai choisi le faux-filet qui était cuit à merveille (bleu, pour les carnivores). Cependant le service des boissons est un peu lent. L'ambiance est très chaleureuse.

Always excellent. Staff amazing 🤩

環境優雅，侍應有禮，不會過份殷勤，在場的顧客都是紳士淑女，菜式賣相精美，當室外溫度是兩度時，室內是剛剛好的溫暖。我們點了生蠔，帶子和T骨扒，每款都非常滿意，一定要再光顧。

A very poor customer service experience. The food took significantly longer than it should have to be served, and the managers attitude was appalling. Unfortunately, while i used to really like Deane's restaurants, i would not recommend them to anyone based on the last visit.

My wife and I had an amazing evening in Deans 8th Sept 2023. One of those meals that you don’t want to end with service that couldn’t be faulted. I’ve eaten in Deans many times in different locations but this one was different. With the hustle and bustle of a birthday party group in a near by group of tables (with singing and cake), the amazing wine and faultless food made for a very satisfied feel as I left the restaurant. Getting out for a meal takes planning on our part so you want it to be worth the expense of babysitters and additional glamming (the wife), and on this occasion it was, very much so. We had mussels in garlic and herb butter (a welcome change to the menu option that wasn’t available on the evening). We also had tempura prawns for starter, very delicious. For mains it was a whole fish (a first for my wife) which was moist and full of flavour with an unbelievable chunky veg ragu type accompaniment. I had the steak, veg and Parmesan/Truffle chips. Faultless. Dessert was just as tasty followed by coffees. We were served by really attentive knowledgeable staff who are a credit to Deans. Ciara was so helpful all night and especially with the wine and there was another gent (can’t recall his name) who was equally professional. If you’ve got this far and are contemplating booking an evening meal, please don’t waste another second. Do it! You won’t be disappointed. 10/10.

Lovely food and great service. Very loud party so we couldn't hear each other speak apart from that we will be back.

We were visitors to Belfast & ate at the Meat Locker on our last night. The food was very good but overpriced. The service was very slow & one particular waiter appeared only interested in the locals, leaving us unattended.

Over priced standard quality food. Salads looks like Tesco pack food quality, steak chewy either chef doesn’t know how to cook or low quality meat!! Chips are good. 10% add on mandatory tips on bills which is too extreme on over priced foods. We have paid cash and waiter never brought back change & instead kept on till like they it’s their money. after long wait we left

Excellent food and excellent service. It is higher priced though.

I got food poisoning from the salmon fish cake & when we reported it the response was really poor totally uninterested

2nd time here. Loved it both times.

A great big tasty steak, cooked to your preference. Windows separating the kitchen from the restaurant add a little theatre to your meal. Menu offers a good selection for everyone, however, as the restaurants name suggests, there are plenty of meat options. Fantastic house gin and wine, chez Dino, very reasonably priced.

Was in Belfast for work - decided to treat myself to a steak. The food and service were excellent. The steak was also perfectly cooked.

Not cheap but well and truly worth it

Fantastic. Great staff and service. The steaks were gorgeous. Also exceptional chips and onion rings. Plus the whisky and mushroom sauce was just stunning. Highly recommend.

Great looking restaurant with cracking steaks. Everything that we tried was perfectly cooked and extremely tasty, service was spot on too. Would definitely return next time I’m in Belfast.

Excellent food (recommend the lamb), beer or wine, not to forget the desserts! One should reserve, it is worth it.

Absolutely incredible experience with Deanes Meatlocker We had our wedding meal here and each and every one of our guests commented on how good the food was, how good the service was and how perfect the venue was for the wedding. We had 33 people in total, everyone’s steak was cooked to perfection and delivered at the same time. From start to finish, the communication, the advice, the follow through on the service, the vibe in the room, the food, the wine - all phenomenal! I cannot wait to eat at Deanes again and I highly recommend it to anybody looking for a venue.

Visited the restaurant last Saturday night- fully booked but managed to squeeze us in. Very good Service especially by Anthony who was professional, polite and very attentive. He is a real asset to the restaurant. Restaurant manager had an excellent manner too even in the face of crazy busyness! Meal was really well prepared, with great flavours especially the steak! Well done to all the team 👏

Food was very good and service excellent but disappointed with the extremely high prices for both food and drink. I know this is a prestigious restaurant but the pricing is verging on ridiculous. £39 for a 10oz sirloin!!! £34 for a bottle of own label plonk. Only went as had a voucher £140 for 2 starters, 2 mains, bottle of wine, pint of Guinness and a West Coast Cooler. Place was busy so obviously people don't mind being ripped off.

One of the best meals I have ever experienced before very reasonable prices by far the lobster was awesome there was zero faults throughout all our meals very high standard

Brilliant selection of food and drinks

Good service and reasonably priced. Food was excellent and on par with a Miller and Carter for quality. Would recommend

Have the Deanes Burger/Meat Locker Burger. The best burger my wife and I have ever tried. Based on the quality of the burger I'm sure the steaks are outstanding too, but the burger was absolutely amazing. Service is good, not rushed and staff is very friendly. Nice relaxing atmosphere. Give it a go 🙂

So very disappointing! I’m a massive fan of Alex and couldn’t wait to dine in his restaurant! Can I begin by saying it’s a little out of the way for us but we made a special effort to celebrate our 36th wedding anniversary. I had...

Our waiter was very good and for the most part the food was very good, inparticular the pork belly bites. My sirloin had all of the fat cut off which is the reason I ordered sirloin and was slightly over. But the 1.3kg t-bone ordered medium was very over cooked. They didn't have another t-bone so we had to have this one but it was still £50 which albeit for a lot of meat was a lot of money. The chef came and personally apologised which was very impressive and why this is 4 stars. It was almost 3 because the maitre de tried to say the sirloin side of it was medium because there was a little pink (it wasn't medium). The French pinot noir was delicious and all in all a good restaurant.

The waitress was fairly rude. The salt aged ribeye was thin and gristly. The steak knives were duller than a butter knife. The tiramisu was a dry cake with whip cream on top. The wine was good. The mushrooms were excellent. Wouldn't recommend. Waste of money.

The only thing wrong with this superb place - and that thing is not their fault at all - is that yobs come in here and throw money around and then some get very drunk.

Shockingly poor customer service which made the night and meal extremely disappointing. I would not recommend this restaurant as there are a number of better alternatives very close by

The staff were great. Can I call out Bronagh and her colleagues for exceptional customer and table service. She appeared calm and friendly to my 9 guests and every dish for every person was presented well and warm. All agreed that the food was sublime. Put simply, the best steaks in Belfast and a couple of the guests went further and said they were the best steaks they ever had! Thanks

Lovely dinner spot. Steak cooked and presently perfectly. Expensive but absolutely worth it. Service a bit slow at times, but it was Saturday night and very busy.

Absolutely would not recommend this venue. Appalling customer service.

Superb Experience. Food was fresh and tasty and portions were adequate . Great service. Definitely be back

This was a very generous Wedding present for us. We were both looking forward to the evening, but we were both very disappointed with the over priced meal. I hoping there was a clue in the title, ‘The Meat Locker’ so we both ordered steaks,...

This was our first time and unfortunately we were all disappointed, especially for the price. The fish of the day and steak were both average. My risotto starter wasn't cooked properly and it wasn't warm. I expected more. The bill came to just under £500, 10% tip already included which I was surprised with for a party of 4. We won't be back.

We had a great meal, Chateaubriand, a Riojas. Fabulous

My duck was bland and very little taste very disappointed but chips were excellent

Really stylish place where you can get a very pleasant simple lunch for £6.50. Of course, you can just as easily spend ten times that for a great meal but, what's not to like about a quality wee lunch for £6.50? After it I wasn't...

Terrific food with lamb chops as some of the best that we ever tasted. Price is very reasonable.

Lovely meal there was 5 of us for a 50th birthday meal we all got fillet steak which was great but I recent the fact that a service charge was put on the bill at£25 the service definitely wasn't worth it I would rather they put the price of the meal up slightly and let me decide what tip to leave

Only good thing about Love Fish the server Conal. Restaurant baltic had to be moved. Food so mediocre. Quicker than a McDonalds not that frequent like fast food service. Shocking. Tourists beware

Cibo buono, mi aspettavo più scelta sul menù di pesce. Prezzi medio alti, ma come un po' in tutta Belfast d'altronde

My wife and I had a meal in the Love Fish part of Deanes for my birthday. Squid to start followed by sea bream and pan fried cod cooked to perfection. A couple of gins and a glass of wine a nice way to spend an evening.

Been trying to call Deanes Meatlocker in regards to a booking this Tuesday. Called 7 times at various times throughout the last two days with know answer. Spoke to one of the other restaurants asking if I could book through them (as they answer the phones) to be told they are no longer allowed to access the other restaurants booking system. Also ask why I’m unable to book at any time on Tuesday and my response was “oh I don’t know as deanes Meatlocker and Love fish should be open this Tuesday as well as Decano.” So tried again to call Meatlocker to later be told that they are actually closed on Easter Tuesday and to try Decano or wait until Wednesday. To say that the lack of social media awareness, poor customer service and poor leadership from all at Meatlocker is an understatement. I would also like to know why the lisburn road branch is still open when the rest are closed… surely as a company this should be a company closure to ensure all staff get time off.

Food was amazing, very busy on a Tuesday night, great to see it!