Coming Soon — March 2008
(menu)Archives for March 2008
Long Chim
COMING SOON (March 2008)... David Thompson, the Aussie chef behind acclaimed Thai restaurant Nahm, is planning to open a Thai street-food café called Long Chim. It’s early days as he’s still looking for a site, concentrating on Soho, with plans to open late this year or early next. What’s on the menu? ‘Noodles, laksas, roast duck and a few curries and salads, just as you would find on the streets of Bangkok,’ says Thompson.
Helene Darroze at The Connaught, Mayfair
COMING SOON (June 2008)... Since Angela Hartnett left the fine-dining space at The Connaught last year, it has undergone a major refurbishment. Now it’s almost ready to welcome its next leading lady: Helene Darroze, who holds two Michelin stars at her eponymous restaurant in Paris. She'll be taking the reins in the kitchen from Monday 14 July, when she’ll be serving up refined, seasonal cooking which takes much inspiration from her native Landes in south-west France.
Murano, Mayfair
COMING SOON (May 2008)... It’s shaping up to be a busy year for Angela Hartnett. In August she’ll open her flagship restaurant Murano in Mayfair (20 Queen Street, W1), where diners can expect the finely wrought Italian food for which Hartnett was renowned at The Connaught. Then in September, she’ll helm another Gordon Ramsay Holdings project, the York & Albany (127-129 Parkway, NW1), a restaurant with rooms on the Primrose Hill/Camden borders. It will comprise a deli area featuring a pizza oven, a dining room serving simple but robust Italian food and a private dining area in the basement. The site will also offer 10 bedrooms.
J Sheekey Oyster Bar
COMING SOON (March 2008)... Come October there will be a way to sample J Sheekey’s buzzing atmosphere and great fish without the struggle of making a booking. Opening next door to the original and with its own entrance, the J Sheekey Oyster Bar will have a no-reservations policy, so diners will be able to walk in, grab one of 30-odd stools around a central bar and order oysters, fruits-de-mer platters or a small selection of cooked dishes. St Martin’s Court, WC2.
The Botanist
Hot on the heels of opening both The Empress of India and The Prince Arthur in Hackney last year, brothers Tom and Ed Martin are forging ahead with their next venture, Sloane Square’s The Botanist. Opening in May, the dining room and bar will serve up seasonal British food alongside fine wines and cask ales in a snazzily refurbished pub. 7 Sloane Square, SW1, 020 7730 0077.
Megu
COMING SOON (March 2008)... The Mayfair townhouse where the Queen was born in 1926 is set to open its doors as a branch of New York’s über-glam Megu in November. Details of the venue are sketchy, but like the NY original it’s expected to boast opulent surrounds (including an ice-sculpted Buddha carved daily) and tout innovative Japanese cuisine along the lines of char-grilled tuna skewers with white miso and Gorgonzola, and foie gras and crispy Kobe beef croquettes. 17 Bruton Street, W1.
The Champagne Bar at St Pancras
Having successfully set up The Champagne Bar at St Pancras, catering giant Searcy’s is due to complete the second half of the project in August with a restaurant, bar and private dining room on the same platform. St Pancras International Station, NW1.
Bob Bob Ricard
COMING SOON (March 2008)... Uber-designer David Collins has been creating the quirky interiors for Bob Bob Ricard, which opens in September on the former site of media-favourite Circus in Golden Square. Said to be inspired by Edwardian first-class railway carriages, Collins’s design will complement the restaurant’s British brasserie food – think hot buttered crumpets and fish pie served all day, right through to 3am. 1 Upper James Street, W1.
Bryn's
He made his name on BBC’s Great British Menu, then successfully relaunched Primrose Hill stalwart Odette's, and now Welsh chef Bryn Williams is to launch a more casual gaff on Fulham Road called Bryn’s, serving up simple British food using Welsh ingredients where possible.
Delve inside earlier archives for October 2007 or browse through newer archives for April 2008.
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