7 New Restaurants To Book This Month
Manthan, Mayfair
Rohit Ghai – the man behind popular Chelsea restaurant Kutir – has launched Manthan, an Indian restaurant specialising in sharing plates and cocktails. Manthan (which means ‘to churn and reflect’) is inspired by Ghai's international career and dishes will reflect his experiences in kitchens across the world as well as the street-food markets he has visited throughout India for the last 20 years, in particular Madhya Pradesh, where he grew up. There will be a selection of Ghai’s mother’s signature dishes on the menu, including his family’s aloo paratha with homemade churned butter, a traditional Punjabi breakfast dish of bread stuffed with potato, and the menu also features sections dedicated to Sekwa kebabs (a Nepalese delicacy) and Rassedar curries. There will also be a firm focus on vegetarian dishes and a selection of traditional desserts – all served in upscale surroundings.
49 Maddox Street, Mayfair, W1S 2PQ
Visit ManthanMayfair.com
Ekstedt at the Yard, Westminster
Michelin-starred chef Niklas Ekstedt is gearing up to open his first restaurant outside of Stockholm, Ekstedt at The Yard. Inside the five-star Great Scotland Yard hotel, which was once the home of the Metropolitan police, the restaurant will bring Ekstedt’s wood-fired ‘old Nordic’ cooking to the UK for the first time, featuring a menu of signature dishes alongside an inventive cocktail menu and pioneering natural wine list. The open kitchen will allow diners to sit at the centre of the action as the team prepare dishes including ‘oyster flambadou’ with smoked apple and beurre blanc nasturtium; ember-baked leeks with white fish roe and smoked roe deer; reindeer with smoked celeriac, black pudding and salt-baked roots to share; and a cep soufflé with birch ice-cream and blueberries to finish. Elsewhere on the menu, Ekstedt’s team will source seasonal produce for his daily churned butter, freshly baked bread, pickles, ferments and cultures, all of which will be made in-house.
3-5 Great Scotland Yard, Westminster, SW1A 2HN
Visit EkstedAtTheYard.com
Mimi Mei Fair, Mayfair
Samyukta Nair, the restaurateur behind Mayfair’s Jamavar and Bombay Bustle, has opened the doors to MiMi Mei Fair. Samyukta and designer Tom Strother at Fabled Studio have imagined the three-floor restaurant as the secret London residence of ‘Empress MiMi’, who has opened the doors to her private residence for the first time. There are seven different rooms, some filled with teal leather touches and art-deco glass wall lights, others with dining booths for two or four people, separated with mirrored panels. Beyond folding timber screens on the ground floor you’ll find the Peacock Room, a private dining room. Hand-painted with birds and flowers, the room seats eight – ideal for special occasions. The kitchen is led by Chinese-Singaporean exec chef Peter Ho and serves contemporary dishes from across Hong Kong, Singapore and mainland China: think crispy golden langoustine with truffle; smoked-applewood seabass with shaoxing wine, sweet soya and fried leeks; and an impressive dim sum menu during the day. Larger dishes for the table include traditional roasted Peking duck with homemade pancakes; and lobster cooked three ways. Make sure to order a chestnut sour, the bar's autumnal take on an ameretto sour.
55 Curzon Street, Mayfair, W1J 8PG
Visit MimiMeiFair.com
Haugen, Stratford
D&D London – the group behind restaurants such as Bluebird Café and German Gymnasium – is set to launch an Alpine-inspired all-day dining café, first-floor restaurant, grab-and-go deli and rooftop bar overlooking the Olympic Park. Just in time for the colder months, highlights from Haugen’s menu include sharing plates of ‘Mountain Fondue’ served with sourdough, new potatoes and pickles; and tartiflette with reblochon, bacon and potato. Elsewhere on the menu, guests will be able to tuck into comfort classics such as raclette and schnitzel with warm potato salad and lingonberries. Desserts will include the kitchen’s signature chocolate fondue, with marshmallow, fresh strawberries and honeycomb for dipping, alongside apple strudel and ‘Schwarzwälder’ cherry vinegar sorbet with kirsch cream and chocolate mousse, topped with chocolate crunch, cherry gel and an almond cinnamon tuile. A great spot for groups, interiors combine chic chalet-inspired décor, and its 150-cover terrace comes with faux fur throws and heaters. The rooftop bar is inspired by the après ski atmosphere of bars in the Alps, and will serve up cocktails, glühwein and schnapps.
9 Endeavour Square, Stratford, E20 1JN
Visit Haugen-Restaurant.com
Kudu Grill, Peckham
Amy Corbin and Patrick Williams opened Kudu in Peckham in 2018, winning over critics and locals for its creative food and warm atmosphere. A Michelin Bib Gourmand quickly followed. In early 2020, the couple opened neighbourhood cocktail bar Smokey Kudu under the arches by Queens Road station. This summer saw the opening of Curious Kudu, a gallery and private dining space for up to 14 guests, and this month they’ve opened a fourth site, Kudu Grill. The team has revived a former Truman’s pub on Nunhead Lane to create a 50-cover restaurant that focuses on braai – a South African way of grilling that uses only wood and charcoal – inspired by Patrick’s South African roots. With most dishes coming straight from the open grill, the menu comprises five sections – snacks, starters, braai mains, sides and desserts. We love the sound of grilled potato flatbread with lardo and wild garlic; whole black bream with zhug butter roti – designed to share – and the cured salmon with rooibos-smoked crème fraiche.
57 Nunhead Lane, Peckham, SE15 3TR
Visit KuduCollective.com
The Sea, The Sea, Hackney
Chelsea’s chef-led fish shop and seafood bar The Sea, The Sea opened a multipurpose space in Hackney at the end of July. In a railway arch on Acton Mews, the venue serves as a centre for product development, with the team producing a range of stocks and sauces to sell to customers. From this month, it also houses an immersive dining counter led by executive chef Leo Carreira, who will serve an omakase-style tasting menu from its open kitchen. Serving just 12 guests per sitting, dining will be centred around a counter, and the opening menu includes dishes such as aged turbot with grilled peas and honeycomb tomatoes; horse mackerel with pine nuts and sake; and the intriguing-sounding langoustine ‘wedding cake.' This month is already booked up, so now’s the time to secure a couple of spots for October and November.
337 Acton Mews, Hackney, E8 4EA
Visit TheSeaTheSea.net
Galvin Bar & Grill, Bloomsbury
Michelin-starred brothers Chris and Jeff Galvin are set to open Galvin Bar & Grill alongside chef Adam Gray in the Kimpton Fitzroy London at the end of the month. Housed in an impressive dining room – which was once home to celeb hotspot Neptune – diners will be able to head straight into dinner or stop off for an aperitif in Fitz’s, the hotel’s glamorous cocktail bar. To start, dishes will include glazed Dorset lobster omelette and a selection from a seafood bar, while mains will include beef short-rib with salt-baked celeriac, bone marrow and ale-braised onions; turbot T-bone with aromatic fennel, potato terrine and a herb butter sauce; and grain-fed chicken cooked with smoked garlic, girolles and hasselback potatoes. Puddings will come in the shape of the Galvin’s well-loved apple tarte tatin with clotted cream ice-cream, along with Gray’s take on bread-and-butter pudding and autumn berry trifle.
1-8 Russell Square, Bloomsbury, WC1B 5BE
Visit GalvinRestaurants.com
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