The Luxe Foodie Openings & Experiences To Know

For the month of October, intimate omakase restaurant LUNA is partnering with Dom Pérignon for an exclusive champagne pairing. Set around LUNA’s 12-seat counter, executive chef Leonard Tanyag will pair his 12-course omakase with four exceptional Dom Pérignon cuvées: Dom Pérignon 2018, Dom Pérignon P2 2008, Dom Pérignon Luminous Rosé 2010 and Dom Pérignon Rosé 2009. The menu moves from Kampachi Crudo and O-toro Tartare to Masu Toro Nigiri and a Caviar Taquito with Oscietra caviar, exploring the contrast between the freshness and complexity of the champagnes and the delicate umami of contemporary Edomae sushi.

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The team behind Peckham favourites Levan and Bar Levan is heading into central London with Cassette, a new French-inspired restaurant in Covent Garden. Taking over the former Grind site on Maiden Lane, Cassette will move away from Levan’s broader European menu in favour of Parisian bistro cooking. Head chef Essa Fakhry, formerly of Dublin’s Note and Planque, has created a menu that promises plenty of French classics with a modern edge. The dishes will include a stuffed pig’s trotter inspired by Pierre Koffmann and a playful take on stargazy pie, with a chicken leg emerging from a sharing coq au vin jaune pie. Dessert is equally French in spirit, with îles flottantes served with peaches.

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Two of London’s most exciting Michelin-starred counter restaurants will come together for one night only on 22nd September, as Pavyllon London’s executive chef Benjamin Ferra y Castell welcomes Andy Beynon, chef-owner of east London’s 18-seat Behind. Part of Pavyllon’s Counter Culture series, the evening will bring together the restaurants’ distinct approaches to fine dining across a four- or six-course menu. Expect inventive, seafood-led cooking from Behind alongside Pavyllon’s refined French gastronomy, with dishes including sea bream with kaffir lime and jalapeño, smoked kipper with scallops, pike roe and scallop black pudding, followed by poached beef fillet and dark chocolate namelaka with caramel. Guests can add orzo pasta with French onion consommé and a raspberry, herb and ginger pre-dessert to create the six-course menu. Dining takes place at Pavyllon’s 30-cover counter or in the main dining room, with both chefs joining guests throughout the evening.

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Mayfair’s latest steakhouse, Cordelia’s, has taken over the former L’Atelier Robuchon site on Clarges Street, bringing live-fire cooking, in-house aged British beef and a distinctly late-night approach to W1. British cuts are at the heart of the menu, alongside Galician beef, Finnish Sashi and the more unusual Italian Parmesan-fed beef. Head chef Jordi Sebastianelli, formerly of Le Petit Beefbar in Chelsea, will cook over an open charcoal grill at the centre of the restaurant. The Mayfair formula doesn’t stop at steak, either. As the evening progresses, DJs and live music will turn the restaurant into more of a late-night destination.

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For Negroni Week, Mayfair ristorante and enoteca Nipotina has teamed up with hospitality writer and creator Henry Southan on a limited-edition drinks menu. The highlight is the Negroni Shakerato, Southan’s twist on the classic Campari Shakerato. Campari is shaken with Malfy gin, sweet vermouth and orange juice, then strained into an ice-cold martini glass and finished with orange zest. A smart nod to the ritual of aperitivo, it’s available exclusively at Nipotina throughout Negroni Week.

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One of The Savoy’s most storied cocktail spaces is getting a wine-focused makeover. Relaunching in October as The Beaufort Wine Bar, the ground-floor space will centre around a 250-bottle list, with roughly half available by the glass thanks to Coravin. Head sommelier Romain Audrerie, who previously opened the wine programme at Chiltern Firehouse, will oversee the list, which will sit alongside a new food menu designed for lingering over a glass or two. Expect charcuterie sliced tableside from a custom flywheel trolley, black truffle cheese fondue and a dedicated caviar selection. Cocktails aren’t disappearing entirely either. The new list will include a series of ‘gastronomic wine cocktails’ built around spirits including cognac, grappa and pisco.

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Sushi master Endo Kazutoshi is returning to London’s dining scene this October with a new two-storey Chelsea townhouse. Set inside the former Five Fields space on Blacklands Terrace, the new venue will combine an intimate ten-seat omakase counter with a Japanese listening bar upstairs. On the ground floor, ENDO will take its cues from the sushi counters of 1920s and 30s Tokyo – a nod to the era when Endo’s grandfather opened his first restaurant in Yokohama. Guests will sit at a 200-year-old hinoki counter from Kyoto, with a menu centred on dashi and traditional Japanese techniques. Dairy is off the menu entirely, while the sushi will focus on wild-caught fish from the British Isles. Rice, nori, wasabi and soy sauce will still be sourced from Japan. Upstairs, Moga – named after the ‘modern women’ of Japan’s Taishō era – will offer a more atmospheric experience, with a tea-led cocktail menu created with Postcard Teas and vinyl played through custom Taguchi speakers. Initially reserved for ENDO diners, it will become a bookable standalone experience from December.

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