Tom Kerridge to open first London restaurant
The new venture is set to open as a standalone restaurant in 2017, on the site of the hotel’s current Rib Room Bar and Restaurant, which will close in early 2017 for a complete renovation.
More details are expected to be released early next year.
The site will be Kerridge’s first opening in London, and his third overall, after the Hand and Flowers – which was the first pub to receive two Michelin stars, in 2011 ‒ and the more casual pub The Coach, which opened in 2014 to wide acclaim.
The Jumeirah Carlton Tower in Cadogan Place is part of the global Jumeirah Group, and has two other restaurants: The Chinoiserie, and The Club Room – the latter of which is part of the Peak Health Club & Spa.
Katie Benson, general manager at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower and Jumeirah’s regional vice president for Europe, says: “Tom [Kerridge] is one of the country’s top culinary talents and we are delighted to be working with him and his team to create London’s most exciting new restaurant next year.”
Kerridge said: “We are thrilled and honoured to be opening in London at this landmark location in Knightsbridge and we will be revealing more details on our plans early next year.”
New ventures and successful teams
In an interview with BigHospitality in August this year, Kerridge was open about his plans for a new venture.
He said: “We are always thinking of ways to make new ventures work, as we do have a strong team. I’m never going to say never. Our success is all about the teams.”
The chef was also candid about the influence of high-end dining (such as that often seen in Knightsbridge hotels) on his pub-style classics, especially in light of a one-off collaboration with French culinary legend, Alain Ducasse, at The Hand and Flowers.
He said: “We do cook with French techniques using British produce. Our sauces are made with a French emulsification of butter, and stock; it’s all an understanding of French methods.”
The chef recognised London cuisine as among his favourites, citing Jason Atherton’s Sosharu and Pitt Cue’s Devonshire Square site as “the last two best meals that I’ve eaten”.
Both of Kerridge’s pubs were recognised among the Top 100 Restaurants at the National Restaurant Awards 2016, and the chef also makes regular appearances on shows such as BBC Saturday Kitchen, and earlier this year hosted the BBC’s Bake Off: Crème de la Crème patisserie series.
He also has a line of cookbooks, including the forthcoming Tom Kerridge’s Dopamine Diet, to be released in January, and he also confirmed to BigHospitality in August that a new TV show ‘celebrating good fast food’ was due in 2017.
