Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Feast: Food to Celebrate Life, by Nigella Lawson.
Nothing gives quite the flavor a rib roast does, but I know it's hard to carve. If you get your beef from a butcher, ask him to cut the meat off the bone and then sit or tie it back on, so that you get all the flavor but can slice more easily. Otherwise, go for a boned roast, such as sirloin. For 8 - 10 people you should be fine with 7 lb. Roasting times as for the rib roast still apply.