An East European chophouse will open next month in the crypt of St George’s Church in Hanover Square, a troubled site in Mayfair that has seen the departure of two previous restaurants in the past year.
Elezar, which takes its name from the Hebrew eleazar meaning “God has helped”, is from a trio who share a common eastern European heritage: Misha Zelman, co-founder of Goodman steakhouses and the Burger & Lobster chain, head chef Erik Miotto and consulting chef David Bury.
Misha says: “I want Elezar to become a restaurant guests are proud to return to and recommend, with my own heritage and my team’s at the very core of everything we do. With more than 30 years in steakhouses and beef, and long-standing relationships with the best farmers and suppliers, I want to bring everything I’ve learned into this project, because our guests are at the heart of everything we do, and buying whole carcasses and whole fish allows us to offer something very important to me: fair prices.“
Erik’s cooking draws on his Ukrainian family roots and his experience in top London kitchens including Cycene and Akoko, while David’s Polish heritage informs Elezar’s approach to raw fish carving and whole-carcass butchery – which will be dramatically presented in the form of meat fridges displaying whole carcasses and dry-aged cuts in full view of the dining room.
Pickles and ferments will also play their part, in a menu which opens with ‘Zakuski’ (bites to follow a drink) such as open sandwiches on rye bread topped with herring, pork cheek, anchovy or caviar, followed by hot and cold starters (‘Miedzy’ and ‘Malasol’) such as pierogi and a mackerel tartare, and mains including whole fish and large cuts of meat.
The drinks list draws on Eastern Europe, including a Pickle Martini, a Fernet Spritz made with traditional Czech-made Fernet, and a vodka-heavy cocktail menu, a Czech house beer and wines from across the Balkans, supplemented by a strong French selection of French vintages reflecting the tastes of Mayfair.
The setting, in the crypt of a fashionable Queen Anne church dating from 1721, was first slated as a restaurant called Undercroft for the London debut of Birmingham chef Brad Carter – a project that collapsed last year before opening. Chef Aldo Zilli then took up the challenge, but closed after less than six months over the summer.
Elezar will open on Monday 2 November.
