A new gluten-free Peruvian restaurant from Martin Morales and a Tom Dixon-designed Antipodean-style dining house on the Strand are among the hot new openings on London’s restaurant scene this month
Bronte
Overlooking bustling Trafalgar Square, Bronte has taken over the site which previously housed the short-lived Strand Dining Rooms, and is set to be a ‘fast paced’ all-day dining restaraunt serving up a seasonal menu inspired by far-flung places across the globe. Chef Andrew Lassetter (previously of Eight Over Eight and Cocoon) and Head Chef Jonathan Villar (Peter Gordon’s Kopapa and Providores) are at the helm of the kitchen dishing up Antipodean and Pacific style seasonal menus focusing on clean and healthy eating, using locally sourced ingredients wherever possible.
Iconic British designer Tom Dixon’s Design Research Studio has fashioned the space giving the restaurant a bright and stunning new look with floor-to-ceiling windows and seating seamlessly cascading from bar to restaurant to the terrace for al-fresco dining. Dixon took the restaurant’s namesake Lord Nelson, who was also the first Duke of Bronte, as his inspiration using elements of Nelson’s naval career to create a “collector’s house” atmosphere, using artefacts collected from around the world.
Casita Andina
Ceviche founder Martin Morales opens Casita Andina on Soho’s Great Windmill Street this summer, a sister outpost to Andina in Shoreditch – a restaurant dedicated to the superfood ingredients from the Peruvian Andes.
The July opening is inspired by Peruvian ‘picanterias’ – the traditional family-friendly eateries found across Peru with Vitelio Reyes (previously of Lima Floral) as executive chef and dishing up home-style comfort food, which will be entirely gluten-free. With 58 seats across two floors, ceviche counter, pisco bar and takeaway area on the ground floor as well as an intimate patio on the first floor, the restaurant has been designed by Martin Morales and CantorMasters Interior Designers and fitted out to look like a traditional house from the area – complete with textiles made using ancient Andean weaving techniques and works by Peruvian artists on the walls.
Sardine
Situated in an annex of the Parasol art gallery near Old Street, this Mediterranean-style “buzzy, no-nonsense” eatery sees Stevie Parle’s protégé Alex Jackson (ex-head chef at Dalston’s Rotorino) manning the kitchen, specialising in wood-fired cooking and dishing out food inspired by Provence, Languedoc, Sardinia or the Amalfi coast in a ‘farm house’ style. Expect dishes in the ‘grand-mère’ tradition, such as leg of lamb cooked à la ficelle with white beans and anchovy, or a whole rabbit to share. Starters include handmade pasta with salami, dandelion and ricotta and sides include ratatouille and Domino potatoes.
Sardine is open for breakfast right through to supper, with all meat and fish sourced locally for freshness, with other speciality ingredients shipped in from locations such as Provence, Corsica and Sardinia. Closed Mondays.
Berber & Q’s Shawarma Bar
Chef Josh Katz (of Ottolenghi and Galvin Bistrot Deluxe) is expanding his popular eatery Berber & Q carrying across his expertise in preparing charcoaled meats to a second location (Exmouth Market in Farringdon) that focuses on shawarma. Expect slow-cooked lamb and and Middle Eastern-style rotisserie chicken, served up with herb salad, green chilli, grated tomato, tahini, sumac onion and baby-gem leaves, plus optional extras (including blackened aubergine, grilled fatoush and confit potatoes) and all served with pitta to wrap it in.
Berber & Q meats are grilled over a ‘mangal’ charcoal barbecue (handcrafted by the at Clay Oven Company), and all are smoked and marinated in their own juices before grilling. They also serve a range of specially crafted cocktails, plus a decent choice of wines and beers. Open Tuesday to Sunday.
Sagardi
Acclaimed for its Basque gastronomy, Sagardi opens in Shoreditch this July, specialising in traditional Basque country food and drink, all flown in daily from San Sebastian. Notable examples include “Txuleton” (beefsteak), codfish and “piquillo”peppers. As with the other Sagardi restaurants throughout Spain and South America, the 141-cover London restaurant is divided into two spaces: the Pintxos bar offering a range of Basque country snacks served with the infamous Basque cider, regional beers and wines. The second space, the grill restaurant, is home to an impressive central charcoal grill as well as a street-facing, stand-alone (street-facing) butcher within the restaurant, where sides of Galician beef hang from the ceiling, and available to take away.
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