Jeremie Cometto-Lingenheim and David Gingell are teaming up with farmer Andy Cato to open Jolene in Newington Green in mid-September.
The team say the site will revolve around sustainably-farmed grains sourced from two sites in Sussex and Norfolk. The farms are working with Cato to grow chemical-free crops in a bid to counter “destructive farming techniques”.
The grains, milled daily, will be used throughout the daily-changing menu for pasta, stews and salads. Dishes will be chalked up on a blackboard, as at Westerns Laundry and Primeur.
Jolene will open at 9am throughout the week, serving breads, sausage rolls, madelines and pastries.
There’ll also be an evening menu from Thursday to Sunday, with smaller dishes and sharing plates of grilled cod on the bone, olives and artichokes; and a one kilogram T-bone, parmesan and rocket.
Critic Tim Hayward may have recently taken issue with the natural wine list at Westerns Laundry, but the team look to be maintaining the focus at Jolene. There’ll be a small list picked by “natural wine enthusiast” Cornetto-Lingenheim, alongside beers, cocktails, fresh juices and fermented drinks.
Guests will sit at two big sharing tables in the middle of the room, with counter dining overlooking the kitchen and bakery, and eight smaller tables
“We have decided to open a bakery restaurant that revolves around and relies on the grains rather than it just being another ingredient,” say the team.
“Our approach at Primeur and Westerns Laundry has always been attuned to the need for sourcing well-farmed produce ethically grown with soil fertility in mind and tended with care. We’re bringing the same values and narrative to Jolene, this time with breads baked with Andy’s incredible grains and inspired by his passion for sustainable, efficient & sensical farming methods.”
Gingell and Cornetto-Lingenheim met while working at the Wright Brothers restaurant group and opened Primeur in 2014, followed by Westerns Laundy in 2017.