Zut Alors! There's a French invasion of London happening. We've already had successful openings from Daniel Boulud and Bruno Loubet this year. Pierre Koffman is gearing up for launch in Knightsbridge and now they're joined by another returning Frenchman - Joel Antunes.
Antunes was a star chef from the 90s - famed for his restaurant Les Saveurs in Mayfair. After opening his eponymous restaurant in Atlanta and a brief stint at the Plaza's Oak Room in New York, Antunes has returned to the city which started it all for him. He's taken charge of all the first floor dining at the recently-launched four star Park Plaza Hotel in Waterloo, running his Brasserie Joel, the Ichi sushi bar, a pastry and coffee bar and also managing the food at the Primo bar.
Hot Dinners met Antunes at the hotel's launch where he told us; "I cook with passion and love. I don't think I'm very going to be a TV star or anything like that, but I'm always in the kitchen. I love to cook and I love to find the best produce. I cook the way I like to eat - honest, clean cooking."
Antunes also has a lot of love for our capital city. "London is a great city," he told us. "London gave me a good hand when I started my career. I made my name here opening the restaurant Les Saveurs. It was a great experience and I'm very happy to be back."
The chef has already tried out Bar Boulud, but although full of praise, he's particularly impressed by the new breed of British chefs. "I went to the opening (of Bar Boulud) because Daniel and I have been good friends for 20 years. It was fantastic, but you know today you have so many great young British chefs today. Twenty years ago - I came here in 1991 - they were all were cooking the food of great chefs like Raymond Blanc or Pierre Koffman. Today I can see all the young British chefs finding their own way. I think the culinary level inside and outside of London is amazing."
And we have to say the same for Antunes ever-flowing canapes at the launch. We had our fill of pork belly, quail, fois gras with horseradish, scallops and much more than we can remember - as well as a huge array of sushi and pastries. We were very impressed and can see the first floor of the Park Plaza being a big hit with Londoners and tourists alike. It also helps that the hotel has a stunning view of Big Ben, and plenty of window seats in the 170-odd cover brasserie. Hot Dinners will certainly be making a return visit.
You can find out more about the Park Plaza hotel and the Joel Antunes run restaurants here.
