Restaurant Radar: December 2018

Tamarind Mayfair​
The first Indian restaurant in the UK to be awarded a Michelin Star has reopened after an eight-month re-build with twice the seating capacity and a brace of new chefs at the helm. Peter Joseph has gone and in his place are executive group head chef Karunesh Khanna, previously head chef at Michelin-starred Amaya in Belgravia, and Tamarind Mayfair head chef Manav Tuli, formerly head chef at Chutney Mary. Set over two floors, the lower ground floor restaurant now has an open plan kitchen while upstairs is a first floor dining room, with 152 covers between them. The menu is described as being a contemporary take on authentic Indian cooking ‘combining and celebrating diverse regional methods of cooking’

20 Queen St, Mayfair​
www.tamarindrestaurant.com​​​

Din Tai Fung​

The wait for the European debut of one of the world’s largest Chinese restaurant groups ends this month, with the opening of its flagship UK site in Covent Garden. The group’s famous xiao long bao will be the focus of the restaurant alongside other authentic Taiwanese dishes, such as steamed chicken soup and steamed prawn and pork shao-mai. The capacious restaurant is also set to feature a cocktail bar serving Taiwan-inspired cocktails and traditional Chinese tea.

5 Henrietta St, London​
www.dintaifung-uk.com​​​

Spuntino Heathrow​

The scruffy small-plate joint in London’s Soho is moving into more mainstream territory with the launch of a site at Heathrow’s Terminal 3. The New York-inspired restaurant will serve travellers its American comfort as part of a franchise agreement with TRG Concessions, including mac and cheese; burgers; and peanut butter ice-cream sandwiches. Unlike the original, which has a more edgy, adult feel to it, the airport restaurant will be larger and brighter and more family friendly and will serve a children’s menu and a breakfast menu that are exclusive to the airport site.

Heathrow Terminal 3​
spuntino.co.uk​​​

Bonnie Badger​

Fresh from opening Southside Scran in Edinburgh last month, Tom and Michaela Kitchin are moving away their city heartland to open a gastropub with 14 rooms on Scotland’s east coast. Located a 30 minutes’ drive outside of Edinburgh in the town of Gullane, the restaurant will have an informal and pubby feel and feature a strong wine and whisky selection.

Main Street, Gullane​
www.bonniebadger.com​​​

Manchester House​

Having stepped away from the ambitious restaurant he helped set up with Living Ventures (it entered administration in October), chef Aiden Byrne is back with a vision of once again putting it on the map. Details about his exact plans and new menu are being kept under wraps for the moment, but impending preview nights means more will be known soon, however Bryne is promising to continue Manchester House’s ethos of pushing the boundaries and ‘delivering a unique fine dining experience’.

18-22 Bridge St, Manchester​
www.manchesterhouse.uk.com​​​

Public House by Nico​

Chef Nico Simeone’s new restaurant will open on Friday 14 December, bringing ‘modern British gastropub cuisine’ to Glasgow’s West End. Dishes on the menu include beer batter fish of the day; flat iron steak with chimmicurri and smoked tomato compote; chestnut gnocchi with sprout tops and smoked pancetta; and curried monkfish with mussels, bok choi and lime, with traditional roasts served on Sundays. Simeone also operates Six by Nico and 111 by Nico restaurants

333 Great Western Road, Glasgow​
www.publichousebynico.co.uk​​​

Wallfish & Wellbourne Bistro​

Well-regarded Bristol restaurants Wellbourne and Wallfish Bistro have merged to create a single restaurant in Clifton Village. Wellbourne was launched in 2017 by Dabbous alumni Ross Gibbens and Michael Kennedy, who have since opened sites in London and Spain. Wallfish - which is owned by Seldon Curry and Liberty Wenham - announced its intention to close early this year after five years in business (the joint venture is within the site that was previously home to Wellbourne). The menu is an intriguing fusion between the two that includes hand-rolled linguine with shellfish sauce and red mullet; and grilled whole Cornish plaice with olive oil and aged vinegar.

25 The Mall, Bristol BS8 4JG​
www.wellbourne.restaurant​​​

Imperial Treasure​
The latest in a string of big money-backed Chinese restaurants to open in the capital, Imperial Treasure trades from a huge site in St James’s. It’s the first European outpost of the 23-strong fine dining group of the same name (a number of its sites have Michelin stars, including Yu Bau Xuan in Shanghai). The London outpost will serve an upscale Cantonese menu that includes Peking duck, barbecued meats; caviar with scrambled egg white; grilled silver cod; and baked crab with pepper.

9-10 Waterloo Pl, St. James’s, London SW1Y 4BE​
www.imperialtreasure.com​​​

EartH Kitchen​

After a career spent running other people’s kitchens, Chris Gillard is finally putting his name to EartH Kitchen. The former St John head chef was head hunted by Village Underground founder to open a large, multi-faceted restaurant in an art deco former cinema on Dalston’s Kingsland Road. The 130-cover restaurant will be an informal cafe by day but will step things up in the evening with an ambitious menu that will explore “what British food actually is in 2018”.

11-17 Stoke Newington Road, Dalston, London N16 8BH​
www.earthackney.co.uk​​​

Burger and Beyond​

Street food operator Burger & Beyond has launched its first permanent restaurant on Shoreditch High Street. The group, which runs residencies at Street Feast Woolwich and Camden Market, has taken on a 65-cover for its debut bricks and mortar opening. It offers an extended menu including a classic cheeseburger, as well as a rice krispie fried chicken burger; and mushroom raclette burger. There’re also small plates such as black pudding croquettes with habanero; and a pear, goats cheese and almond salad.

147 Shoreditch High Street, London, E1 6JE​
www.burgerandbeyond.co.uk​​​

Boxpark Wembley ​

Shipping container mall Boxpark opens its largest site yet this month, a 2000-capacity development by Wembley Stadium on 8 December. A total of 27 food and drink traders are set to join the scheme, and there’ll also be a 20,000 sq ft events space and a BoxBar serving craft beers, wines and spirits. Confirmed vendors so far include Boxpark veterans The Athenian and Thai Express, as well as burger brand Cut + Grind, Japanese concept Mitsuryu, and Iberian tapas bar TapaVino. Boxpark has also partnered with Just Eat to allow its traders to deliver to residents of Wembley Park and beyond.

Olympic Way, Wembley, London​
www.boxpark.co.uk​​​

Yamagoya​

Ramen restaurant Yamagoya is returning to Soho to take over the downstairs site currently home to Shuang Shuang on 15 December. The concept first popped-up above the Shaftesbury Avenue venue in 2016, before relocating to Waterloo. Now it’s back in Soho, but this time the two restaurants are switching places, with Shuang Shaung taking the refurbished upstairs space, while Yamagoya will move in downstairs. Dishes will include roast beef ramen made with leek and spring onion; small bites such as chicken karaage with yuzu mayo; and the Instagram-famous raindrop cake – a transparent cake that turns to liquid in the mouth.
64 Shaftesbury Ave, London W1D 6LU​
www.yamagoya.co.uk​​​