Heaton, Butler & Bayne joins Covent Garden’s restaurant revolution

22-Mar-2013 - Last updated on 13-Sep-2024 at 15:14 GMT

Heaton, Butler & Bayne and the Counter Bar will open on Tuesday 2 April, with the downstairs cocktail opening a week later

Just days after BigHospitality reported on the recent flurry of restaurant launches in Covent Garden, Heaton, Butler & Bayne – a modern British all-day dining concept from London-based restaurateur Robert Siegler - is now set to open on the corner of Floral and Garrick Street next month.

The 90-cover restaurant features an adjoining ‘Counter’ bar, and a downstairs cocktail bar with space for an additional 40. It is based on the site of The Forge restaurant, which Siegler also ran but said ‘needed some changes’.

“The Forge needed repositioning and we thought we might look to relocate,” he told BigHospitality. “But the competition for sites is so hot now that we thought we’d just completely change the offering with something new.”

Heaton, Butler & Bayne, which is named after the old stained glass factory on which the site is based, will offer a daily-changing menu of bistro-style dishes, with the kitchen headed up by Swedish chef Jonas Karlsson, previously of the Fifth Floor Restaurant at Harvey Nichols.

On the menu

The menu will include earthy soups, a range of seasonal risottos and a varied selection of meat and fish. Dishes such as Duck Bresaola with pickled cucumber and pomegranate; Jerusalem artichoke soup with homemade brioche; and truffle butter and Cured Loc Duart salmon with beetroot and peashoots, all feature.

The restaurant will also offer a fairly short wine list, with approximately 120 wines on it. Siegler envisages an average spend upstairs of about £40 across the board, with a pre-6 o’clock menu coming in at around £20 for three courses.

It is the third London site for Siegler, who also oversees the nearby Le Deuxième, and Market Café on Broadway Market.

And, following our report on Tuesday about the transformation of Covent Garden, the restaurateur added: “This is a great place to be. I’ve been in Covent Garden for a long time now and what’s happened over the past five years is absolutely wonderful.

Cool again

“All of the new places offer something a bit different, Covent Garden’s becoming cool again, we’re seeing more independents coming in, it’s lovely.”

Heaton, Butler & Bayne is designed to evoke a ‘cosmopolitan yet simple’ feel, with wooden furniture and clean lines throughout. Sharing tables and a kitchen counter aim to create a ‘convivial’ ambience.

A spokesperson for the restaurant’s designers Gundry and Ducker said: “This was such a fantastic building to work with. We have created a contemporary feel using neutral, clean colours aimed at complimenting the space that already exists. The building itself creates a naturally airy feel and this is something we wanted to accentuate through our use of light”

The venue also includes the downstairs Heaton, Butler & Bayne Bar, featuring 1960’s-inspired furniture with high, leather bar stools with space for around 12 seated, and a ‘Board Room’ available for private hire.

Heaton, Butler & Bayne will open on Friday 8 April.