The big names...
Barnyard
After the tremendous success of Dabbous, Ollie Dabbous launches his second restaurant just round the corner. This time the head chef is Joseph Woodland (The Square) and the menu will focus on comfort food. Unlike its predecessor with its year-long waiting lists, Barnyard will not take bookings. Opens March 17th.
Town Hall Hotel restaurant – name tbc
The departure of Nuno Mendes from Viajante and its subsequent closure came as a shock to many, but a brand new eatery is in the pipeline courtesy of Jason Atherton. The head chef will be Lee Westcott, who has worked with Atherton in Hong Kong. Opens April.
City Social
And it’s another launch for Atherton who continues to grow his empire by taking over the restaurant at Tower 42, previously run by Gary Rhodes. Paul Walsh (Gordon Ramsay) will be head chef, and almost as important as the food will be the views from the 24th floor windows.
Claridge’s
It was first announced last November that Simon Rogan would be replacing Gordon Ramsay at the luxury hotel’s restaurant, and this spring Rogan will finally be filling the gap he left when his two-year pop-up Roganic ended.
Rivea
Alain Ducasse already has a restaurant called Rivea at Hotel Byblos in St. Tropez, and now he’s set to bring a taste of the Cote d’Azure to Knightsbridge. It replaces Il Ristorante at the Bulgari Hotel, and is scheduled to open in May.
Look out for...
Lyle’s
One of our chefs to watch in 2014, James Lowe of Young Turks fame unveils his first solo restaurant located in the Tea Building in Shoreditch. Opens in May.
Ting
The Shard’s Chinese restaurant Ting finally opens on May 6th, part of the Shangri-La Hotel.
The Palomar
Layo Paskin of DJ duo Layo & Bushwacka is opening a restaurant along with his sister Zoe. The siblings have partnered up with the team behind Machneyuda, a popular Jerusalem eatery. The menu will have food from the Middle East and beyond. Opens mid-April.
Fischer’s
The new project from the guys behind The Wolseley and The Delaunay will be similarly reminiscent of early 20th century Vienna when it opens in May.
Trending...
There’s no shortage of cheap and cheerful Vietnamese restaurants in the capital, but the recently opened House of Ho and Salvation in Noodles are hip and stylish.
Jamaican fast food is taking off with three Caribbean eateries opening in a short space of time. Notting Hill’s Boom Burger offers burgers and spicy jerk chicken, Dub Jam is an all-day joint inspired by Caribbean beach shacks serving meat on skewers and rum punch, and on March 22nd the Jamaica Patty Co arrives, which as the name suggests will have freshly made patties as well as soups.
Also...
Hawksmoor will no doubt do well when they open a new site in Knightsbridge in June.
Cyrus Todiwala of Café Spice Namaste launches Assado this month. Food will be Portuguese in origin, with Goan and Indian flavours.
Thai beer company Singha delve into the restaurant world with Pacata, with a Pan-Asian menu and a Michelin-starred ramen chef.
Marcus Wareing re-opens his Berkeley hotel restaurant on March 24th with a more casual look and increased capacity. He’s also changing the name to ‘Marcus’.