OUR PURPOSE

Why We Do Things the Way We Do

The Hawksmoor founder Huw, stood in a field with a herd of cows on a summers day. In the background there is a small hill rising up with lots of tree on it.

When we first opened Hawksmoor, we had a simple idea.

Find the best ingredients we could. Cook them well. Create a place we would actually want to spend time in.

That is still what drives us today.

Over the years, we have spent a lot of time traveling, meeting farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and producers who care as much as we do. People who believe that how something is raised, grown, or caught matters just as much as how it tastes.

Because for us, good ethics and good flavor go hand in hand.

Do things the right way, not the easy way

We are not interested in shortcuts.

Great beef comes from cattle that have been properly reared, given time to grow, and looked after by people who care about the land as much as the animal. Great seafood comes from people who understand the sea and respect its limits.

We only work with suppliers who share those values. Not because it sounds good, but because it tastes better.

That means doing things the hard way, more often than not.

Taking the time to build relationships. Paying more when we need to. Accepting that nature is not always consistent.

But we think it is worth it.

The Hawksmoor founder Huw pictured in a green meadow letting a small black cow smell his hand on a summers day.

Let great ingredients speak

Our job, once those ingredients reach us, is simple.

Do not F*** them up.

We cook simply. Usually over real fire. We season properly. And we try to get out of the way.

Because when something is raised well, sourced carefully, and handled with respect, it does not need much else.

A large steak on a charcoal grill, with flames licking the sides of it.

Our People First Culture

A restaurant is not just about what is on the plate. It is about how it feels to be there.

We want Hawksmoor to be the kind of place where everyone feels comfortable. Where you can celebrate something big, or just have a good meal on a normal day. Where the room has energy, but never attitude.

And that starts with the people who work here.

Our people and our culture are what make Hawksmoor, Hawksmoor.

From the start, we wanted to do things differently. Not stiff, not formal, not full of hovering waiters in suits. Just a room full of warm, genuine people who know what they are doing and enjoy doing it.

Our teams wear their own clothes. They bring their own personalities. The service is relaxed but the standards are anything but.

That balance matters to us.

Because when things feel easy and natural, it usually means a lot of work has gone on behind the scenes to make them that way.

“We have always believed that if you look after your team properly, they might just look after you better.”

So we try to do exactly that.

We pay well. We treat people with respect. We have built a culture where people want to stay, grow, and take pride in what they do. It is why we have been named one of the best companies to work for, year after year (14 years running, in fact).

It was not always perfect. In the early days, we were figuring it out as we went along. A bit scrappy, a bit chaotic, held together by good people and great steak.

Over time, we have worked hard to make everything better. The service. The restaurants. The way we support our teams.

But the idea has stayed the same.

Put people first.

Because a restaurant only works when the people in it care. And when they do, you can feel it the moment you walk through the door.

A shot of full team outside Hawksmoor New York on a sunny day. They are collected together as a group in their work attire, some in chef's whites and some in neat shirts, smiling at the camera.

Try to leave things better

We are not perfect. But we try to do the right thing.

That means thinking about where our food comes from. Supporting farming and fishing practices that are better for the environment. Working with people who care about sustainability and the long term, not just the next delivery.

It also means giving something back.

Over the years, through small things like our desserts and bigger partnerships, we have raised significant funds for causes we care about.

Because being a good restaurant is not just about serving good food.

Keep it simple

In the end, our purpose has not really changed. Find the best we can. Treat it with respect. Cook it properly. Create restaurants that feel good to be in.

And make sure people leave happier than when they arrived.

A man and woman sat laughing to one another whilst sitting at a table full of food, including a sharing steak in a black skillet, fries and wine.

Be a B Corp

We are a B Corp.

In fact, we were the first restaurant in the UK to become B Corp. That means we have committed to meeting high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

It is not a badge we take lightly.

For us, it is a way of holding ourselves to account. A reminder that how we run the business matters just as much as what we serve on the plate.

Unlike other certifications for businesses, B Corp is unique in that it measures a company’s entire social and environmental impact.

We have Five Things We Swear By:

1. Everything stands or falls with people. People are at the heart of every business, nowhere more so than in hospitality.

2. Pick a lane. We can’t be the most sustainable and the most charitable and the most brilliant at people and still run a functional business.

3. We’re a restaurant business. Hawksmoor can only be sustainable if the restaurants are great.

4. Love data. It’s key to getting good at this and seeing the impact of the work.

5. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Our job is to be better tomorrow than we are today.

A neatly laid out table with sliced steak, a glass of red wine and sides of fries and creamed cabbage on top of it.

Our Emissions

When you have a business like ours, with beef front and center, it comes with not only a huge responsibility, but also a real opportunity.

We work closely with our farmers on quality, animal welfare, and sustainability. There is even a 30-page specification document behind what we consider to be great, ethical beef.

We think about the wider food system and the role we play within it. Not just what we buy, but how it is produced, and what that means long term.

We became a carbon neutral restaurant group, which we believe was a first.

Offsetting is not a perfect solution, but it is a step along the way, and it creates a real incentive for us to reduce our footprint.

Alongside that, the farms we work with are on their own journey. In the UK, all of our beef suppliers are working towards net zero by 2040. That means measuring their impact and making changes to things like feed, manure, and land management.

There is no single fix.

But we believe that by working closely with the right people, asking the right questions, and being honest about the challenges, we can help move things in the right direction.

SUSTAINABILITY

At Hawksmoor, we’ve spent the better part of a decade crisscrossing the country looking for American farmers, ranchers, and fishermen who, like us, believe there’s a different way of doing things, one which honors natural systems, increases biodiversity, and helps regenerate the land.

One of the great pleasures of doing what we do is being able to support local American producers do what they do best – help us serve the best steaks in the country by caring deeply about animal welfare and environmental standards. As farmer-poet Wendell Berry puts it, ‘Eating is an agricultural act’. So, in our opinion, is running a great steak restaurant. It’s why we’ve not only been ranked best steakhouse in the world, but also certified as a B Corp – one of a very small group of restaurants to do so.

We believe that sustainable farming, supporting independent farmers, and animal welfare is not just the right thing to do – it is as close as you can get to guaranteeing the best tasting beef. By eating with us you’re helping to preserve their family farms and way of life, and, in a small way, helping to conserve agriculture on the East Coast.

All our beef is pasture-reared to incredibly high animal welfare standards without the use of hormones or other growth promoters. All the cattle are raised and finished by ranchers on family-run farms, resulting in a supply of the best tasting beef from the happiest, ethically raised cattle out there.

When it comes to meat: eat less, but eat better.

We apply everything we have learned about beef (buy the best meat possible and don’t mess it up) to the fruits of the sea. As with beef though, it can be difficult to get a hold of the good stuff. We owe a big debt of gratitude to all the East Coast fishermen and women who catch our lobsters, steelhead, mussels, oysters, halibut, and scallops. And a little bit to beef, which taught us about how we should think about food.

A smiling chef behind a table with three large plates of sliced steak. There is a brick wall behind him with two large circular lights attached to it, giving of a gentle yellow glow.

We’ll continue to update you on our progress as we know that for some of you our sustainability work is a big part of why you come to Hawksmoor; we also know that for some of you it isn’t – you come for the steaks and the experience. Whatever your view we hope you feel that we are doing whatever we can to make sure Hawksmoor makes a positive impact in the world.