Jun Tanaka is coming back with his own restaurant. Previously best known for his Pearl in Holborn and with the Street Kitchen business with Mark Jankel (which is doing very nicely) this is his long-anticipated solo restaurant and sees him taking over the space that once held Nizuni.
It's a French/Mediterranean neighbourhood style restaurant. It's a regularly changing seasonal menu and one that promises plenty of pickled, brined and cured specialties too. Their aim is to combine fine dining techniques with a more casual atmosphere.
As for that menu, it's split into eight parts - all of which include:
- Snacks and starters - barbajuans, oxtail croquettes, veal tortellini with gremolata and bone marrow, and rabbit lasagne with smoked bacon
- Vegetables - smoked aubergine caviar with pickled red onion, Jerusalem artichokes à la barigoule and toasted Fregola and butternut squash risotto with pumpkin seeds.
- Raw and cured - Razor clam ceviche, pickled mussels with smoked paprika and cured veal tongue
- Mains - salted beef cheeks with oxtail consommé, lamb en croute with truffles and whole sea bream with anchovy dressing
- Desserts - pain perdu with honeycomb, tartetatin with rosemary ice cream and freshly baked Madeleines.
There's a concise wine list too. 25 white and red, plus rose and dessert - and expect lots by glass and carafe too.
There will be a bar on the ground floor too - kept back for walk-ins. And it's all being designed by the people behind Paradise Garage and Odette's.
The Ninth opens 23 November at 22 Charlotte Street, London W1T 2NB. There will be a soft launch with 50% off food for dinner on 19 - 20 November and lunch/dinner on 21 November. To book, call 0203 019 0880. For more, follow them on Twitter @theninthlondon
