Des Gunewardina (left in photo), half of the D&D London operation that took over Conran Restaurants in a 2006 management buy-out, has left the company “to pursue other ventures”, days before it opens its 41st venue, Orelle in Birmingham. His co-founder David Loewi, the other D who served as deputy chairman and chief operating officer, […]
Ambitious new restaurant St Barts opens today near Smithfield market, on the edge of the City of London. It is the third venue from three friends who have progressed from pop-ups to the tiny Nest in Hackney and the slightly larger Fenn in Fulham – both of which won rave reviews and high ratings for their […]
Gareth Ward of Welsh powerhouse Ynyshir is planning to open not one, but two new venues in the nearby market town of Machynlleth. The first will be an intimate wine bar/restaurant named Gwen in honour of his mother, which he hopes to follow up with a sourdough pizzeria next door. Gwen will take over the […]
Our weekly summary of what the national and local restaurant critics were writing about in the week ending 2 October 2022. ***** The Telegraph William Sitwell visited Toklas, which can be found on a nondescript street off The Strand. In the same “behemoth of monolithic greyness” where “the machinations of Soho House are stirring” (it’s […]
Fergus Henderson’s world-famous ‘nose-to-tail’ restaurant St John will next month open its first new satellite venue for more than a decade – a two-storey all-day operation including a wine bar in the heart of Marylebone Village. St John Marylebone launches on Tuesday 18 October (now delayed to 19 October) at 98 Marylebone Lane, next-door to a […]
Nathan Richardson, former head chef at the Guinea Grill in Mayfair, is opening his new country gastropub today in the Vale of the White Horse near Faringdon in Oxfordshire. The Lamb Tavern is in Buckland, a photogenic estate village of thatched Cotswold stone cottages built to house staff from the Palladian mansion Buckland House in […]
Britain’s first ‘zero staff’ restaurant is scheduled to open in Oxford later this year. EZ 24 Ramen will be open 24 hours a day, serving bowls of ramen prepared to order in three minutes, and there will be no staff on the premises beyond an operative who pops in every day to top up the […]
Alyn Williams has joined Park Row, the ‘gastronomic amusement park’ off Piccadilly Circus, in a move that marks the venue as more serious about its restaurant credentials than its Batman theme may imply. Named after a seedy Gotham City neighbourhood, the year-old venue is billed as a “fully immersive experience” inspired by DC comics – although […]
Hit Devon restaurant Thomas Carr 1873 is closing permanently tonight as the ongoing staffing and financial crises cut a swathe through the hospitality industry. The Ilfracombe outfit has struggled to find front-of-house staff in recent months and chef-patron Thomas Carr (pictured, above) said he would have to double prices to reflect rising costs. A message […]
Our weekly summary of what the national and local restaurant critics were writing about in the week ending 25 September 2022. ***** The Sunday Times Even the most cynical of critics will be won over by Water Lane, insists Marina O’Loughlin: it’s “just the most serene and beautiful place, billows of flowers framing ornate grade […]
