Club Gascon to launch pop-up in London church

Michelin-starred London restaurant Club Gascon is to open a pop-up in London's oldest church while the main site undergoes renovations.

Cloister by Club Gascon will run for just 17 days from 13 September. The concept will offer a four-course tasting menu created by head chef and Club Gascon founder Pascal Aussignac.

The 28-cover pop up will be housed in the cloisters of St Bartholomew-the-Great, which dates back to 1123, just metres from Club Gascon’s permanent home in Barbican.

Guests will pay £80 per head, with the optional addition of wine flights and tea pairings.

Toulouse-born Aussignac has packed the menu with the refined French-style favourites made famous in Club Gascon. Dishes will include aromatic king scallop with spicy berries and frosted watermelon; and peppered braised beef rib with Oceanic tapioca and samphire.

It will also feature dishes inspired by Club Gascon’s soon-to-launch new concept, and vegetarian alternatives.

Club Gascon, which is owned by Aussignac and his business partner Vincent Labeyrie, opened in 1998 and won a Michelin star in 2002. It closed for a refurbishment on 10 August and is scheduled to reopen with a new design and menu later this autumn.

In August Aussignac said: “This is such an exciting development and I cannot wait to share the updated look and new concept.”

The chef and Labeyrie own a portfolio of restaurants under the Gascon Connection Restaurants group, including Duck 'N Roll in Leeds and London's Chip & Fish, Cigalon and Comptoir Gascon.