This month sees the return of Michel Roux, a new high-end rooftop restaurant just in time for warmer weather and a very different take on carbonara that's not for the purists. (Note - The Park has now been pushed back to June).
Café Britaly
Peckham - 191 Rye Lane, London SE15 4TP
This Peckham restaurant is embracing "Britalian", which sees them cooking Italian food with British produce as well as "Italian-influenced" food. At the forefront of this is their carbonara made with cream and topped with fried egg which will have the purists reaching for the smelling salts. It comes from chef Alex Purdie (Bouchon Racine and Bocca di Lupo) and Richard Crampton-Platt (previously ops director for Bocca di Lupo), so there's some serious talent behind the restaurant. They'll even be doing a Britalian breakfast, with fennel sausages, fried pizza dough and Tuscan beans.
Opening: 8 May 2024
Julie's
Holland Park - 135 Portland Rd, London W11 4LW
Since its heyday as a celebrity magnet back in the 80s and 90s, Julie's hasn't fared quite as well since then. This is the second attempt in recent years to revive its fortunes, but it looks very promising this time. In charge is local Tara MacBain who is reframing it as a neighbourhood French brasserie. She's brought in Chef Patron Owen Kenworthy (previously at Brawn and The Pelican) to run the menu, who will be producing dishes like a lobster souffle. Certainly, seeing the success of Josephine over in Chelsea, this switch to French cuisine looks like a good move for Julie's.
Opening: 8 May 2024
Kioku by Endo
Whitehall - The OWO, 7 Horse Guards Ave, London SW1A 2EX
While clearly a hugely impressive building, the launch of The OWO hasn't seen the hotel's restaurants break through in quite the same way that other recent openings like The Peninsula have. However, the opening of what will probably be their flagship restaurant should change that. Sushi master Endo Kazutoshi is taking over the rooftop (in addition to a ground-floor sake bar which opened last week). The menu promises to be Japanese with a hint of the Med with dishes like chashu pork ramen ravioli on the menu - so it's something quite new for the chef. As the weather warms up, the roof terrace up here will be a real draw too.
Opening: 15 May 2024
Inis
Hackney Wick - 13 Rookwood Way, Fish Island, London E3 2XT
The past year has seen some very interesting openings over in Hackney Wick and Inis sees that trend continuing. Serving up a mix of British and Irish food, anyone who knows our own background will see why we're immediately drawn to this opening. In charge of things in the kitchen is Craig Johnson (previously at Arbutus and The Corner Room) who'll be serving up comforting dishes like mussels with chips and garlic bread on the menu. They will have a full Irish breakfast on offer, including both black and white pudding and roast potato farls.
Opening: 8 May 2024
Chez Roux
Marylebone - The Langham, 1C Portland Pl, London W1B 1JA
He closed both Le Gavroche and Roux at The Landau, but Michel Roux isn't done with London just yet. His latest opening at The Langham (changing rooms from his previous restaurant there) sees him presenting a menu that promises British classics cooked using traditional French cooking methods. What that means in practice is a restaurant that serves both Welsh rarebit and grilled lobster with fries and bearnaise.
Opening: 22 May 2024
Cafe Petiole
Temple - South Wing, Somerset House, The Strand, London WC2R 1LA
After popping up all over town, Rishim Sachdeva finally settled down in Mayfair with his "mostly vegan" restaurant Tendril. Now he's bringing that concept to Somerset House in a new form, opening a "mostly vegan" cafe and deli. Unlike Tendril, this will be an all-day affair, with treats like toasted banana bread on the menu. And there will be various dishes to grab and go, including his vegan tiramisu and his white bean spread/dip which we thought was absolutely amazing on a visit to Tendril.
Opening: May 2024 (date TBC)
Also look out for...
- Brush Grand Café (Shoreditch) - Opening at the big new Artotel in Shoreditch
- Circe (Waterloo) - What was Bar Elba is becoming a new Med-inspired rooftop bar
- Colombo Kitchen (Putney) - Chef and restaurateur Sylvia Perera is bringing her Sri Lankan food to Putney.
- The Counter (Soho) - A follow-up from the Notting Hill original, this time looking to The Aegean for influence.
- Allonda (Fitzrovia) - It's all about risotto here
- La Brasseria (South Kensington) - Afte a crowdfund, this will be their third Italian restaurant.
- The Hero (Maida Vale) - The Pelican team take on a new pub.
All of London's newly opened and upcoming restaurants...
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