Called Embers, the new 42-cover restaurant will open in Brighton’s Lanes on 3 April and will be the first joint venture from long-term friends Marrow and Bartlett-Copeland - chef-patron at Brighton restaurant Isaac At - who first met 15 years ago in Bartlett-Copeland’s first kitchen role at The Grand Hotel in Brighton.
Embers’ menu will focus on creating bold flavours from locally grown ingredients, cooked entirely on a medieval wood-fire cage positioned over a fire in the centre of the restaurant.
The succinct menu will see elements of every dish cooked entirely over local, kiln-dried ash and birch wood, with launch dishes to include glazed lamb ribs with candied ginger, kimchi, and furikake; smokey chicken leg, crispy skin, n’duja aioli, and honey butter; wagyu denver steak, with Roscoff onion, and coffee hollandaise; miso celeriac, koji soaked engiri, fresh spring truffle, pickled sea vegetables, and mushroom XO; and banana split, parsnip and rosemary ice cream, toffee sauce, and praline.
Marrow will head up the kitchen with dishes served sharing-style.
Located on Meeting House Lane, the restaurant has been designed by Bartlett-Copeland and his wife Hannah alongside Marrow, and local carpenter Paul Bethell. The centre fire cage will warm the main dining room and tableware in an effort to maximise energy efficiency, while wood will come from Sussex-based timberman Mark Salanson.
In keeping with the restaurant’s simple aesthetic, large discs of burnt wood will adorn Embers’ walls in place of artwork, while food will be presented on rustic ‘plates’ made from sliced slabs of grey rock.
The restaurant will have space for a further eight covers at its entrance covered by an awning. A additional back room with 18 covers will open in June.
“It’s always been our dream to open a restaurant together and I’m so excited that this dream has finally been realised,” says Bartlett-Copeland.
“We want Embers to be about big, bold flavours and the sort of restaurant we’d want to go to on our days off - it’s all about fire and friendship!’