13 London Openings To Have On Your Radar
HOTELS
Broadwick Soho, Soho
Broadwick Soho is an independent luxury hotel which aims to channel the ‘grit, glamour and wild energy’ of London’s most storied neighbourhood through a contemporary 57-room retreat. Opulently decorated, the hotel’s townhouse aesthetic was created by world-renowned interior designer Martin Brudnizki (of Annabel’s and Scott’s Restaurant) and fuses a range of inspirations, from the Jazz Age to travels around Italy and the era of disco. Each bedroom features bespoke furniture and individually selected artworks, with custom-designed beds, heritage-inspired herringbone floors, tassel-trimmed furniture and sustainable luxury amenities by Ortigia. Downstairs, there’s an eclectic range of restaurants and bars. Dear Jackie, the hotel’s flagship lower-ground restaurant, serves classic Italian gastronomy with a modern twist; Bar Jackie is a vibrant street-level café; the resident-only lounge, The Nook, is a relaxing space with a fireplace and vinyl player for guests to enjoy. Up top, the hotel’s rooftop dining bar and terrace, Flute, offers incredible views over the capital.
Visit BroadwickSoho.com
La Bibliothèque, Haggerston
East London has a new restaurant with rooms, from the team behind sophisticated cocktail bar MAP Maison in London and MAP Petite Maison in Stockholm. A culinary destination with a difference, La Bibliothèque is a restaurant at its core, offering a creative menu with Mediterranean and Japanese influences. While the restaurant is open now, bedrooms will open in December, starting from £200 per room per night. Each room and suite will feature either a double or king-sized bed with luxury bedsheets, a smart TV, hair dryer, in-house MAP Lab bottled cocktails as well as bath robes and toiletries by Cole and Lewis, providing the ultimate place to escape and unwind. Two of the rooms, on the first and second floor, will come equipped with their own kitchenette while the bedroom on the third floor will have a freestanding bath.
Visit LaBibliotheque.co.uk
RESTAURANTS
Bistro Freddie, Shoreditch
Dominic Hamdy is the founder of Crispin in Spitalfields and Bar Crispin in Soho. He only launched Bistro Freddie at the end of September, but it’s fast become the place to get a table – partly thanks to its cool, old-school London dining room. Retaining the same ethos as its siblings, the kitchen focuses on small and predominantly independent producers and growers. The menu is overseen by head chef Anna Søgaard, who joined from Manchester restaurant Erst and began her career in Copenhagen. Anna describes her menu as “the kind of food I genuinely love to eat – robust, hearty dishes with soul” and we couldn’t agree more. Imagine pork crackling and pickled walnut ketchup; Dorset snail flatbread, beef fat, garlic and parsley butter; pork chop, apple glaze and bacon jus; or fried skate wing, peas and curry sauce. There are also pies to share and a pudding menu that nods to decades past – look out for raspberry roly-poly, milk ice-cream with brown ale caramel, and malt bread with cheese.
Visit BistroFreddie.com
Kolae, Borough Market
Kolae is a new restaurant in Borough Market from Som Saa co-founders Mark Dobbie and Andy Oliver. The restaurant draws its name from Kolae (also known as Golae, Galae and Gaw Lae), a cooking style from Southern Thailand where ingredients are marinaded in a curry-like coconut sauce and grilled over open flames. Signature dishes are prepared in the Kolae style, with a variety of proteins or vegetables being finished over smouldering coconut to create a rich and aromatic smokiness. Seasonal fish, game, seafood and vegetarian specials that pay homage to the cooking techniques of Southern Thailand will also be available, alongside vibrant curries, fresh small plates and punchy salads.
Visit Kolae.com
Ben Broomfield
Mauro Colagreco at Raffles London at The OWO
Mauro Colagreco, one of the world’s most respected chefs, has now opened restaurants Mauro Colagreco, Mauro’s Table and Saison within the newly opened Raffles London at The OWO. The restaurants are Colagreco’s first London ventures, bringing a culinary style that has seen him achieve three Michelin stars at his Menton restaurant Mirazur. Colagreco’s eponymous signature restaurant is an ode to British terroir, focusing on locally produced, seasonal ingredients – expect menus such as jerusalem artichoke with hazelnut and cornish monkfish; lettuce with vermouth and cockle sauce; and red berries with yoghurt shiso ice cream and shiso leaf Next door, Mauro’s Table is an intimate chef’s table dining space, where up to 20 guests can sample a creative tasting menu called The Knotted Garden, where guests are taken on a journey meandering through herbs, vegetables and fruits. Finally, across the hallway is Saison – Colagreco’s fresh, elegant take on the traditional all-day brasserie. We can’t wait to try his Île flottante with burnt vanilla, créme anglaise and almond.
Visit Raffles.com
Il Gattopardo, Mayfair
Il Gattopardo, a restaurant inspired by 1960s Italy, has opened on Mayfair’s Albemarle Street. Part of the same group that looks after COYA, Amazonico and Bar des Pres, the menu features Italian classics and modern interpretations of dishes from across Italy, with a particular focus on Sicily, Amalfi and the Southern Isles. Interiors take influence from the style of the celebrated Italian architect and designer Gio Ponti, and the 85-cover restaurant has a hidden courtyard terrace with a fully retractable roof, as well as a 16-cover private dining room. Signature dishes will include Sicilian Mazara prawns with yellow chicory, citrus zest and Taggiasca olive oil; lobster bolognese; and a Northern Italy speciality, 24-month aged Culatello di Zibello Oro Spigaroli (also known as the ‘king of salami’) served inside gnocco fritto, while a dedicated crudo bar will serve a selection of raw and marinated fish and shellfish. Opening in the peak of white truffle season, the restaurant will offer Alba truffles as a supplement on all dishes, priced on weight and shaved at the table.
Visit Gattopardo.Restaurant
Marcus Brown
Maura Colagreco
L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Mayfair
L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon has launched in Mayfair. Continuing to celebrate the legacy of the late chef, the menu pays homage to some of his legendary dishes, including the infamous puree de pomme de terre – with a 2:1 potato-to-butter ratio – which comes with every main course and sea bream carpaccio simply dressed with poppy seeds, lemon vinaigrette and lime zest. The kitchen is headed up by Andrea Cofini, who’s devised a selection of Asian-inspired dishes such as leek ‘mimosa’ salad with mushrooms and wasabi vinaigrette; native lobster with pak choy and spiced lobster bisque; wild seabass infused with lemongrass and baby leeks fondue; and pear jelly compote and foam with chocolate sauce. For a touch of fun, there’s also a champagne trolley and a cheese trolley, showcasing the very best French and Italian cheese from Mons.
Visit RobuchonLondon.co.uk
Jamie Oliver St Catherine St, Covent Garden
The end of the month will see Jamie Oliver open the doors to his new restaurant. Next door to the Theatre Royal in Covent Garden, the menu will pay homage to everything from his mum and dad’s pub and his early days at The River Café through to capturing the spirit of his first endeavour, Fifteen. The menu will celebrate familiar dishes: snacks will include devilled eggs with sustainable Exmoor caviar; Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire cheese croquettes; and Jamie’s Seafood cocktail with native lobster and crab, Morecambe Bay brown shrimp and cold-water prawns. Diners will also be able to share roast Sutton Hoo chicken with stroganoff sauce, shoestring fries and baked wild mushroom rice; and a venison ragu made from slow-braised Royal Windsor Park fallow deer with hand-cut pappardelle and Berkswell cheese. We can’t wait to try Jamie’s classic Snickersphere, a dome of Hill St. chocolate filled with peanut butter semifreddo, salted caramel and peanut praline, teamed up with buttermilk ice cream and butterscotch sauce.
The Wolseley, City
The Wolseley Hospitality Group’s latest venture is The Wolseley City. Just off Monument Square, the site aims to be a sister, not a replica, of the iconic The Wolseley on Piccadilly. Like the original, the dining room resides inside a 1920s listed building which makes the most of its grand architectural details. However, this new restaurant is much larger, offering two private dining rooms and three sweeping bar spaces. Fresh menus pay homage to the original, retaining the ‘all-day’ offering intrinsic to The Wolseley’s DNA. Favourites such as schnitzels, soufflé suisse and steak tartare, calf’s liver and bacon, coq au vin will all be on offer, alongside a large range of crustacea, with some dishes created just for this site.
Visit TheWolseleyCity.com
BARS
Bambi, Broadway Market
Bambi is a music-led wine bar and restaurant from James Dye (the co-owner of Franks in Peckham and The Camberwell Arms) and chef Henry Freestone, who previously won a Bib Gourmand at Peckham Cellars. Bambi operates as a wine bar and restaurant in the early evening (and has already made a name for itself when it comes to martinis), while after dinner resident DJs will take over, playing tunes from the custom-built wall of records over a high-spec vintage sound system until 1am on weekends. The record collection and resident selectors will be curated by Run Dem Crew founder Charlie Dark MBE. On the menu, expect to find casual snacks and main dishes like cauliflower cheese arancini; chicken parm ciabatta, vodka marinara with pickles and aioli; and Dedham Vale rump with lemon and confit garlic.
Visit Bambi-Bar.com
Bar Lina, Soho
Lina Stores’s first standalone bar brings the restaurant group’s signature aperitivi to Soho. Accessed via the delicatessen’s original entrance, heading past shelves laden with pasta, biscotti and other Italian essentials, Bar Lina is housed in the deli’s former fresh pasta kitchen. The space has been transformed into an intimate, candle-lit aperitivo bar, inspired by Italian design from the late 1960s to 1980s with a monochrome and dark red colour scheme. Drinks on offer include a refreshing Bloody Martini with Sicilian tomato water, BVB Vermouth and vodka, or a Basilico cocktail with Original Gin, Rinomato Bianco Vermouth, citric, salt, basil and milk. Expect a variety of Italian bar snacks, including bresaola tramezzino and seadas, and fried parmesan polenta with truffle and mushroom.
Visit BarLina.co.uk
Little Lines at Rixo, Chelsea
Little Lines, a permanent bar from bottled cocktails brand Black Lines, is now open. Based at the RIXO Flagship store on Chelsea’s King’s Road, Little Lines defies age-old conventions that cocktails should be created in front of the drinker. Instead, Little Lines delivers a menu of signature cocktails, served in 2023 style: think sleek branding, ingredients from British distilleries and in ready-to-serve formats. Little Lines will serve a range of classic cocktails, such as a negroni, spicy tommy’s margarita, Aperol spritz and paloma.
Visit BlackLinesDrinks.com
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