A couple of departures from the London restaurant scene were revealed this week.
First off - Eric Chavot is to leave the The Capital restaurant. After ten years and two Michelin stars, he's looking to take some time away from the kitchen. What will this mean to the future of the restaurant? Hot Dinners has learned that David Levin, chairman of the Capital group, will be announcing his plans for the space within the month. We're sure he'll be doing whatever's necessary to try and hold onto those Michelin stars.
Also making a departure from the London restaurant scene, Ambassade De L'ile has closed its doors. Although getting its fair share of decent reviews (a Hot Dinners overall score of 6 for a restaurant is just above average), it may have had trouble recovering from a particularly scathing AA Gill review. The restaurant will apparently be re-opening as a bistro, and we'll give you more news as we hear it.
Some of the above may pale in comparison to Gordon Ramsay's continuing problems at his New York outpost. The press are keen to attack Ramsay at the moment (particularly the Mirror, which really seems to be gunning for him), but the list of customer complaints at The London would make painful reading for anyone, although the allegations of management winesweeping are being strongly refuted.
But if all this sounds like bad news - be thankful you weren't on the receiving end of this particularly nasty bill receieved by a couple of Japanese tourists in Rome recently...
