New opening

• Claridge's have reopened their restaurant as... Claridge's Restaurant

  

  It's been almost eighteen months since Claridge's hotel in Mayfair closed their Davies and Brook restaurant following a disagreement with chef Daniel Humm over the direction it was going in (he wanted to go fully vegan, they weren't so sure). Now, very quietly, the hotel has reopened their signature restaurant space.

  In charge of things as Head Chef is Coalin Finn. He's was at Davies & Brook as

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• Masala Zone takes over the Grade II listed Criterion building in Piccadilly Circus

  

  Masala Zone is ramping things up a notch for its latest opening, taking over the highly impressive Grade II Criterion building on Piccadilly Circus.

  Easily one of London's most impressive dining rooms, the building has changed hands a few times over the past decade or so with Masala Zone promising an entirely new look for the room (where the Grade II restrictions

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• Yannick Alleno is also opening Bar Antoine in London

  

  We've known for some time that multi-Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alleno was opening a top-tier restuarant, Pavyllon, in London (they're apparently deep in soft opening mode right now). But news that he's also going to be running a bar alongside that surprisedlu us today.

  Bar Antoine, named after the chef's late son, sounds like it might be just the place to try some of Alleno's cooking, without the

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• Milan's Langosteria seafood restaurant is the latest to join The OWO

  

  The OWO is going to be a big new opening. AKA The Old War Office, the building is headed up by a Raffles hotel but it's also adding nine new restaurants and three bars. They're quite the bunch too, including Mirazur's Mauro Colagreco, Milan restaurant Paper Moon, the Parisian Café Lapérouse and Endo Kazutoshi's rooftop restaurant. 

  Next to join them is another Milan restaurant, Langosteria, which is being described as a "fashion-world haunt" in its original location.

• Richard Corrigan takes on The Portrait Restaurant at the National Portrait Gallery

  

  Updated 15/6/23 with opening date and restaurant details

  There are many reasons to rejoice in the forthcoming reopening of the National Portrait Gallery, not least is the return of The Portrait Restaurant which has been taken over by chef Richard Corrigan.

  Closed for essential building works and renovations since 29 June 2020, The National Portrait Gallery houses not just the world’s most extensive collections

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• Fish Game comes to Canary Wharf from Macellaio RC founder

  

  14/6/23 - updated with menu details and the opening date

  The man behind Macellaio RC, Roberto Costa, is trying something different for his next opening, Fish Game in Canary Wharf. 

  That name should give you a pretty big clue as to what to expect. Yes, it's a menu of fish and game dishes and, similarly to Macellaio RC, everything will be cooked over a

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• Zia Lucia opens its next pizzeria in West Hampstead with dough made from crickets on the menu

  

  14/6/23 - updated with the opening date

  For their next opening, pizza group Zia Lucia are doing something a little different. 

  One of their USPs is that there are four different doughs to choose from when ordering a Zia Lucia pizza - white flour, wholemeal, vegetable charcoal, and gluten-free. But in their new West Hampstead

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• The new Badiani in Balham will do pasta as well as gelato

  

  If you're into your gelato you'll probably have encountered Badiani, a Florentine gelato chain that's been slowly expanding across London, serving up flavours like cobnut, green tea, pear sorbet and more.

  The next part of London they've scoped out for an opening is Balham, where they're going to be setting up shop next door to the popular cafe Milk. But Badiani are planning something very different for their spot in Balham.

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• The Piccadilly Cicchetti is moving to a much bigger Grade II listed building

  

  Cicchetti must be doing rather well for themselves. Owned by the San Carlo Group (the same people who run the Selfridges rooftop restaurant), the Piccadilly Cicchetti is getting ready to move to a much bigger space - just down the road. 

  They're moving to part of the Grade II listed Piccadilly Arcade. It's a two-floored part of the arcade that will be double the

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• If you love oats you're going to love Oatis the oat cafe opening in Notting Hill

  

  London does love a themed cafe and the one arriving in West London this summer is going to go big on one ingredient, oats. OATIS will be open for breakfast and lunch on Queensway and oats will be at the heart of everything they serve. And these are not just any old oats but steel-cut oats which, we're told, gives them more 'bite'.

  To kick off your day there will be oat bowls, smoothies and pancake offerings

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• Mallow's second plant-based restaurant is going to be in Canary Wharf

  

  11/6/23 - updated with the opening date

  Following their Borough Market opening back in 2021, a second plant-based Mallow restaurant is on the way to Canary Wharf.

  Mallow comes from the same people behind the Mildreds restaurants but here they're a 100% plant-based affair. And for Canary Wharf, the menu will include a few new dishes like:

  • Spinach Dahi
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• Sushi Kanesaka brings omakase to 45 Park Lane

  

  We're still a little surprised when it happens but occasionally the odd restaurant does manage to launch in a fairly stealthy fashion. The latest of those is Sushi Kanesaka which is opening at 45 Park Lane, the hotel right opposite The Dorchester. 

  It comes from top sushi chef Shinji Kanesaka who also has a two-Michelin-starred restaurant by the same name in Tokyo. The London

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• Bancone picks Borough Yards for its third pasta restaurant

  

  On the cusp of celebrating their fifth birthday, the folks at Bancone are also getting ready to open their third restaurant.

  They're the latest to join the procession of restaurants opening in Borough Yards. The space itself is a huge railway arch and it's going to have an open kitchen, plus a large mezzanine space upstairs that can be hired out for private parties.

  In addition to all the usual Bancone

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• Manzi's is a huge seafood restaurant in Soho from The Wolseley Group

  

  Updated 8/6/23 with opening date

  As the first new restaurant to be opened by The Wolseley Hospitality Group since it was formed following the departure of Jeremy King and Chris Corbin, all eyes are on Soho for the reveal of Manzi's.

  The restaurant is named after the much-loved (but now closed) legendary London fish restaurant. It's not on the same site - the original Manzi's was

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• RH England at Aynho Park opens five new restaurants at once in the Cotswolds

  

  The huge new gallery opening RH England at Aynho Park in Oxfordshire has, in one fell swoop, brought five new restaurants to the Cotswolds.

  Set over a 73-acre estate, it's really quite the undertaking. On an estate that includes an architecture and design library, a Sir John Soane exhibition and gardens by Capability Brown, the five new restaurants

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