Anglo-Italian chef Angela Hartnett opens her latest venture today on the top floor of the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Cicoria, a bar and restaurant inspired by Turin, is open to the general public as well as ROH ticket-holders.
The restaurant will serve lunch and dinner, with the rooftop bar offering panoramic views from its terrace over Covent Garden piazza and London’s West End. The menu offers a choice of cicchetti and antipasti, a short selection of pasta and risotto dishes from about £15 and main dishes around the £30 mark, along with sharing plates of rose veal chops or Cornish monkfish tail.
Best known for her flagship Murano and its Cafe Murano spinoffs, Angela says: “Opening at the Royal Opera House – such an iconic London institution – is a real privilege. We’re creating something entirely new for the space: relaxed, with food that celebrates exceptional produce and simplicity. Most of all we want the restaurant and bar to be for everyone, not just for those attending a performance.”
Sophie Wybrew-Bond, chief commercial officer of the Royal Ballet and Opera, added: “We’re absolutely thrilled to be collaborating with Angela Hartnett at the Royal Opera House on creating breathtaking new spaces – where exceptional art and extraordinary food come together in perfect harmony. Working with our longstanding partners, Company of Cooks, and set in the vibrant heart of Covent Garden, our new restaurant and terrace bar are poised to become one of London’s most exciting dining and drinking destinations.”
