Named Mr. Todiwala’s Kitchen, the 75-cover restaurant is expected to serve an upmarket Indian menu similar to that at Café Spice.
The menu, which is yet to be finalised, will have more of a “Parsee twist” than Café Spice, featuring Todiwala’s take on dishes devised from the northwest-Indian cuisine. Typical Parsee dishes include Patra ni machhi (steamed fish wrapped in banana leaf); Jinga no patio (shrimp in spicy tomato curry); and Tamota ni russ chaval (mutton cutlets with white rice and tomato sauce).
Todiwala told BigHospitality that he was hesitant to finalise a menu until he found the appropriate staff.
“I’ve got a basic menu in mind but I need to see what skill and experience we can get our hands on. It’s always tough for us as an Indian restaurant to find staff. We cook aspects of Indian cuisine that some people may not be familiar with, and if they are from different regions of India they will have to adapt and be trained.”
The chef, who has been praised for his work in training and developing chefs in the UK, added that Hilton Worldwide approached him to open a signature restaurant at the property in a bid to add value to the hotel.
“The hotel is in a great location, just a mile down the road from Terminal 5 and not far from 4, 3 and 2 either. There’s nothing in the area of similarity. It will also benefit from the business community not wanting to venture too far out from hotel. I expect it will appeal to American travellers who have heard great things about Indian and Asian food in the UK.”
Hilton Heathrow
It will be joined by a second restaurant at the 350-bedroom hotel serving traditional British dishes such as roast lunches and casseroles. David Dorricott, former executive chef at the House of Commons, will oversee the restaurant hotel's other food and beverage operations as executive chef.
The hotel, which is due to launch on 31 August 2011, is situated one mile from Heathrow Terminal 5 in 13 acres of landscaped grounds.
Upon opening it will also feature a spa with eight treatment rooms, a meeting and events space large enough for 1170 delegates, two executive boardrooms and five syndicate rooms.
Each bedroom will feature Hilton Serenity beds, MP3 media hubs, wall-mounted 37” flat screen TVs and wireless internet access.
Greg Place, general manager of Hilton London Heathrow Airport Terminal 5, said: “This is a hugely exciting time for us to be opening the Hilton London Heathrow Airport Terminal 5. Hilton opened the world’s first airport hotel in 1959 and we look forward to continuing their expertise and welcoming guests to experience the fantastic facilities this latest addition has to offer.”
Hilton signed a 20-year franchise agreement to run the hotel with Hospitality Management International in 2008.