With the Easter break out of the way, new London restaurants are opening their shiny doors and beckoning you inside across town this week. From Taiwanese buns to Ottolenghi’s latest outpost, here’s our round up of the hottest London restaurant launches.
Smokehouse Chiswick
Islington’s renowned Smokehouse has opened in west London this week, with a new restaurant in Chiswick. Head chef Neil Rankin – who took the foodie world by storm with the extraordinarily successful Pitt Cue Co. – has created a menu packed with lip-smacking smokehouse dishes, not for the faint-hearted. Dedicated to using the highest quality meat, the restaurant has its own smoking shed and butchers its rare-breed Highland and Dexter beef on site. Expect smoked lamb shoulder with polenta and raclette, short-rib Bourguignon and rock oysters with beef dripping, as well as Sunday roasts. Between the pub, whisky room, dining area and garden, it’s set to be the perfect place to while away the weekend.
Joe’s Southern Kitchen & Bar
Fried chicken is still having a moment across London, so it’s no surprise that Joe’s Southern Kitchen & Bar is opening a new branch in Kentish Town (there’s already one in Covent Garden) on 13 April (it’s currently in soft launch with 50% off all food 6-12 April). Their signature sweet tea brined fried chicken with lemon salt and Tabasco honey will banish memories of greasy high-street chicken shops, and what better place to enjoy it than in an old school all-American diner, complete with neon billboards, vintage Coca Cola signs and leather banquettes? If chicken isn’t your thing, they serve classics such as sticky ribs, as well as brunch and bar snacks. If you’re after a lock-in, head downstairs to the Jailbird bar housed in an old police station for an Americano-style tipple.
BAO
Simply named after what the owners describe as a ‘pillowy soft cloudy steamed bun’ (pictured top), BAO has been impressing Londoners with the Taiwanese delights it’s been dishing out of its tiny Netil Market stand in Hackney and is now setting up permanent shop on Soho’s Lexington Street from 8 April. From the team behind Michelin-starred Gymkhana (our 2014 restaurant of the year), Trishna, Lyle’s and Kitchen Table at Bubbledogs, diners can expect braised pork, lamb shoulder and panko-crumbed daikon radish. If you’re feeling adventurous, the menu boasts modern takes on traditional dishes such as fried lamb tongues, all washed down with a cool glass of peanut milk. If the success of the Sethi clan’s other ventures is anything to go by, there’ll be queues around the corner for this one.
Ottolenghi Spitalfields
Yotam Ottolenghi is continuing his quest to turn London into a Mediterranean-cum-Middle-Eastern mecca of zingy salads, char-grilled vegetables and delectable sweet offerings with a new deli in Spitalfields (pictured above). Channelling a similar vibe to the original Islington branch, the 70-seat restaurant will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner from 8 April. With grab-and-go food perfect for busy City workers as well as plenty of space for those after a more relaxed affair, the array of imaginative, healthy dishes will no doubt make this one of east London’s favourite lunch spots.