Dabbous, the Fitzrovia restaurant that opened to rapturous acclaim five years ago, is to close this summer as chef Ollie Dabbous (right in picture) and his business partner Oskar Kinberg, who runs the basement bar, prepare their next venture. No details have yet been released for what Dabbous says will be a “major undertaking” with […]
Chef Monica Galetti is opening her long-planned first restaurant, Mere, in Fitzrovia on Monday March 6, alongside her sommelier husband, David Galetti. It is named in tribute to her mother, Mary — Mere in Samoan, as well as being French for mother. The Samoan-born chef trained in New Zealand before joining Le Gavroche in 1999, rising […]
⦿ Jay Rayner of The Observer reviewed Jaya in Llandudno, where he found “cracking Punjabi food by way of East Africa”. “From the specials there are lamb chops, marinated in their own lime pickle, which is all fire and acidity. The heat of the oven has mellowed the punch a little but turned it into something deeper […]
⦿ Marina O’Loughlin of The Guardian reviewed Jikoni 7/10 in Marylebone, the first restaurant from “chic and beautiful” TV chef and writer Ravinder Bhogal, which she found “immensely girly“. “Jewel-coloured saris and handmade Indian tablecloths notwithstanding, the girliest element is the food, which is light years from the usual Brit curry machismo… You can’t escape the cuteness: […]
⦿ Fay Maschler of the Evening Standard reviewed Elystan Street 4/5, Phil Howard’s new restaurant in Chelsea, where she ate some “sublime” dishes but gasped at the prices and missed having a tablecloth. “Smoked mackerel velouté with Porthilly oysters — from the River Camel estuary — with leek hearts and eel toast is a secular […]
You wait years for a restaurant from the old Silk Road to arrive in London, then two open in the same month. Samarkand, named after the oldest inhabited city in central Asia, has already launched in Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, with a menu led by the Uzbek national dish plov (pictured), beef short ribs cooked to […]
On the former site of the Hart brothers’ basement tapas joint Fino, comes a new Uzbek restaurant backed by international restaurateur Sanjar Nabiev and industry consultant Charles Oak (whose credits include Pied à Terre, Gleneagles and many more). The new Fitzrovia venue, Samarkand, is named after Uzbekistan’s city on the Silk Road – the ancient […]
To celebrate summer, the team behind Fitzrovia’s Scottish dining spot, game specialist Mac & Wild, have launched their latest burger. The Big Mac and Wild is available to customers for just one wee pound every lunchtime this week, but will feature on the menu for the rest of summer. Mac & Wild are offering 50 burgers each […]
From Adam White (the man behind Fitzrovia’s popular brunch spot Riding House Café and Village East in Bermondsey) comes a vast new café in Victoria’s Nova development. The 330-cover venue is spread over two floors with a raised private dining room and outdoor seating area, accommodating 90, with an al-fresco bar. Rail House Café will […]
This year, Fitzrovia’s “quality” but decidedly “old-fashioned” Indian restaurant Gaylord celebrates its 50th anniversary. This enduring venue was first opened in 1966 by then owner P.L. Lamba (who himself has just celebrated his 97th birthday). In recognition of Gaylord introducing its signature Chicken Tikka Masala all those years ago, they will be offering a special 1966 menu […]