Gary Usher is closing his bistro Hispi in Didsbury next month, when it will be taken over by fellow northwest chef Andrew Sheridan’s Open Restaurant Group and relaunched as a live-fire restaurant called Arcadian. The new owners have pledged to retain all Hispi staff, so there will be no job losses. For Gary, whose Chester-based […]
Leading West African restaurant Akoko has applied for a new premises licence that would see it moving across Fitzrovia from Berners Street to Wells Street. Westminster Council invited members of the public to comment on the proposed move by July 8. The application covers the ground floor and basement of the premises at 14-16 Wells […]
Live-fire restaurant Nela (pictured) has closed down after less than a year at the revamped Whiteley’s shopping centre in Bayswater – to be replaced by a similar venture under a new name and ownership. The new occupant is Kaio, funded by an unnamed private investor and operated by hospitality consultants Berkeley Simmons Leisure – who have retained […]
Sushi master Endo Kazutoshi has announced plans to open an intimate, 10-seater omakase restaurant in Chelsea in October – just over a year after a 14-hour fire destroyed his flagship at the top of the White City. The new venue, called simply Endo, will take over the townhouse near Sloane Square occupied until February last year […]
Army officer-turned-singer/songwriter James Blunt has taken over the Carpenter’s Arms in Hammersmith, his second pub after the Fox and Pheasant, his local in Chelsea. James acquired the cute Victorian pub in elegant St Peter’s Square from Jack Greenall of Wren Pubs, owners of The Surprise in Chelsea and The Walmer Castle in Notting Hill. A […]
An ambitious new restaurant opens next week in one of the most historic buildings in Leeds, with a kitchen headed by chef Craig Rogan, son of L’Enclume’s Simon Rogan. Moods has taken over the ground floor of Grade II-listed First White Cloth Hall on Kirkgate, which was fully restored five years ago. Built in 1711 […]
A Sri Lankan entrepreneur has opened his first international outpost in Canary Wharf – Prawn Crazy, which he has ambitions to turn into a global brand. Apinash Sivagumaaran launched Isso (meaning prawn in Sinhala) ten years ago as a 16-seater dining spot in central Colombo, and has grown it to a group of five across […]
A new Turkish-Cypriot restaurant from a former Bibi head chef kicked off a year-long residency at the Globe Tavern in Borough Market this week. Kismet is a joint production from chef Kieran Mustafa and restaurateur Dom Hardy, the man behind Bistro Freddie, Crispin and Canal. Kieran has worked in senior roles at some of London’s […]
Chinese/Texan smokehouse Hon’s BBQ opens in Hackney Wick today, bringing founder Man Hon Luk’s slow-cooked meat with East Asian flavours to a permanent home with the help of a crowdfunding campaign that raised £36,000. Hong Kong-born Hon road-tested his barbecue skills with a two-year residency at nearby hangout All My Friends under the name Uncle […]
Belfast-born chef Chris McClurg and his partner Alice Stewart this week launched their ambitious debut restaurant at the Regency House boutique hotel in the city. Chris was previously chef patron at Paul Ainsworth’s No 6 in Padstow, Cornwall, which appears regularly on the Harden’s 100 list of the UK’s best restaurants. He stepped down in […]
