Wagyu mousse (pictured) is the signature dessert at an upmarket new Pan-Asian restaurant in Chinatown. YiQi has taken over the former site of Hong Kong Buffet in Lisle Street. The kitchen is headed by Malaysian-born former Hakkasan and Yauatcha chef Lum Wah Cheok, whose menu features a number of Malay seafood dishes along with rice […]

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Singapore-born restaurateur Ellen Chew has linked up with Singapore government agencies and businesses to open a new restaurant showcase for the island state’s unique Chinese-Malay cuisine. Singapulah, which launches on February 15 in a four-storey site on the edge of Chinatown in Shaftesbury Avenue, will offer a menu based around ingredients supplied by 13 of […]

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A West London arts space has opened a chic new Italian restaurant under the direction of highly rated chef Emanuele Pollini. The venture shares Ladbroke Hall, a former car factory from the early motoring era, with contemporary art and design operation Carpenters Workshop Gallery. Pollini at Ladbroke Hall occupies the vaulted lobby of the grand […]

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A new Mediterranean restaurant taking inspiration from both its European and North African shores launches next week in Marylebone. Bellazul opens on Thursday 1 February in Blandford Street on the former site of Italian restaurant Il Baretto, with ex-Cecconi’s and 5 Hertford Street head chef Simone Serafini directing the kitchen. Dishes range from lobster spaghetti […]

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An Italian steakhouse from Lecce in Puglia has opened a London branch in Chelsea – with little in the way of introduction or promotion. Tabisca has taken over a site near Sloane Square long occupied by Como Lario, and more recently by short-lived restaurants Liv and 1771. Tabisca’s menu showcases a selection of Italian raw and […]

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Much-travelled Aussie chef Scott Hallsworth opens the second permanent venue of his pan-Asian project, Freak Scene, in Balham, south London, next week. Freak Scene Sushi & Grill launches on Thursday 18 January, and follows the first permanent Freak Scene in Parsons Green, which opened last spring in “fine form“, according to the 2024 Harden’s guide. […]

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