The venerable Gallic establishment Richoux will be relaunched at 173 Piccadilly next month under two chefs with immaculate CVs who promise to offer a taste of “luxury at affordable prices”.

Richoux was opened by two French exiles in 1909 and became a prominent destination at various salubrious London addresses, before falling into administration last year. It was bought out of administration by Naveen Hana of the family-owned Cairn hotel group.

Chefs Jamie Butler and Lewis Spencer will run the kitchen. The pair met at Moor Hall in Lancashire, having previously worked at such gastronomic stars L’Enclume, Le Manor Aux Quat’Saisons and New York’s Eleven Madison Park.

They will offer a menu of classic Parisian brasserie dishes from 23 February, with breakfast and afternoon tea added to the options in late spring. The restaurant’s red livery is changing to navy blue, and the interior will evoke “old-school Parisian cafés”.

The two chefs are excited by their first opportunity to take charge of a kitchen. “Richoux meant a lot to a lot of people,” says Jamie. “It’s looking very glamorous, but it’s more accessible than it looks. One of our rules is, there’s nothing on the menu that will cost more than £20.” 

Lewis adds: “We want 95 per cent of people to feel they can come in – whether that’s a 94-year-old who’s known about Richoux her whole life or a 14-year-old kid who’s here on holiday. It’s definitely going to be a little bit different to what it was before.”

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