While London restaurants remain shuttered, we’ve rounded up 10 new openings we’re looking forward to this year, from seafood sanctum Manzi’s to the Batman-themed Park Row.
News
Culinary world pays tribute to Albert Roux
Tributes have been pouring in from the culinary world for chef and restaurateur Albert Roux, who helped introduce the UK to French fine dining, who has died aged 85.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Wine List Confidential
As 2020 (finally) draws to a close, Wine List Confidential would like to wish all of our readers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Digital edition of Wine List Confidential 2020 launches
We are delighted to launch the online edition of this year’s Wine List Confidential guide, profiling London’s top 100 wine-focused eateries you need to visit when restrictions are lifted.
Top London restaurants delivering during lockdown
If you’re keen to get your fried chicken or sushi fix during lockdown fear not, these top London restaurants are open for business and will deliver to your door.
Battle of the somm: has Covid killed the sommelier?
With the pandemic having shuttered restaurants in England for a month, Lucy Shaw explores the shifting role of the sommelier, and how a flexible approach will be key to their survival.
Tier two ‘like being cut off at the knees’
London’s restaurateurs have opened up to WLC’s Lucy Shaw about the difficulty of trying to trade under tier two restrictions, with co-founder of The Wolseley, Jeremy King, describing the situation as “like being cut off at the knees”.
Amuse-bouches: The latest restaurant news bites
In restaurant news this week: Dining out in the UK is predicted to fall by over a third in September, London wine bar Top Cuvée gets ready to open a shop, and a MasterChef: The Professionals finalist prepares to open a West African restaurant in October.
Chef Robin Gill announces closure of The Dairy restaurant
Chef and restaurateur Robin Gill has announced the closure of Clapham-based The Dairy restaurant and Counter Culture bar and delicatessen.
Top London restaurants for wine to visit as restrictions ease
We’ve consulted the author of Wine List Confidential, Douglas Blyde, for his top restaurants that you can visit in London from this Saturday.
10 London wine-focused pubs and bars to visit when they reopen
We round up 10 of the best wine-focused pubs and bars in London which you should put on your list to visit when they reopen.
Relief for UK hospitality sector as furlough scheme extended
The UK government has extended a scheme to pay wages of workers who have been placed on leave due to coronavirus lockdown measures.
Top restaurateurs argue re-opening early could be ‘counterproductive’
A letter addressed to cabinet ministers and signed by some of the UK’s top restaurateurs has warned that opening restaurants too early may be “counterproductive” and cause many businesses to fail.
Wine List Confidential to publish fully revised 2020 guide
Wine List Confidential, the unique wine list rating service by the drinks business, will publish a fully revised guide featuring London’s top 100 restaurants for wine in May.
10 food and drink trends that will shape the decade
From sober bars to biodiverse dining, we’ve rounded up 10 food and drink trends predictions for 2020 from global trends forecaster Wunderman Thompson Intelligence’s Future 100 report.
Wine List Confidential Awards 2019: Profiling the winners
As we approach the publication of the second edition of the 2019 Wine List Confidential guide, we profile the winners who picked up the top gongs at this year’s awards ceremony.
Get ready: Next issue of Wine List Confidential to be published in May
This year’s Wine List Confidential guide to London’s best restaurants for wine lovers is due to be published in May in time for the London Wine Fair.
New on Wine List Confidential: Trade
Trade in London’s Soho, a kindly priced members club for those connected to the hospitality industry, was brought into being by two star Master Sommelier operators.
12 of London’s best female sommeliers and wine buyers
We round up the top female sommeliers and wine buyers currently behind the wine lists at some of London’s top restaurants for wine, based on our recently published guide to London’s top 50 most powerful sommeliers.
Top 10 most powerful sommeliers in London: 2019
Following the publication of our guide to the best restaurants in London for wine, we felt it high time we shone a brighter light on those responsible for those lists. Here, we offer a run down of WLC’s Top 10 Most Powerful Sommeliers in London.
New on Wine List Confidential: The Drop
Originally built to store coal to power Victorian London, before becoming a Mecca for clubbers, Coal Drop’s Yard, home to The Drop wine bar, has become an impressively rehabilitated culinary quarter.
WLC Eats: Skylon
wlc heads to Skylon on London’s Southbank to test-drive its new menu, devised by Finnish-born chef Helena Puolakka, gorging on cured salmon on rye, fresh pappardelle in a smoked tomato sauce with creamy goat’s cheese and a heavenly chocolate tart.
New on Wine List Confidential: Caractère
At Emily Roux and Diego Ferrari’s debut venture in London’s Notting Hill, sommelier Romeo Bisacchi sums up the wine list: “We’ve got no Pétrus or Romanée-Conti, but we do have stuff you couldn’t find elsewhere”.
New on Wine List Confidential: Levan
With an elating playlist and flavour-packed dishes, Peckham’s Levan, the sister site of Salon in Brixton, offers a window onto France’s increasingly en vogue Jura region.
New on Wine List Confidential: Stem
Unrecognisable from its past as a Thai Square site, Stem is Mark Jarvis’ Mayfair gem lit by gold strip-lights, with a popular chef’s table for six guests and an engaging, reasonable list.
New on Wine List Confidential: Imperial Treasure
Service is as smooth as a 1982 Château Léoville Barton at the European debut of Asia’s acclaimed Imperial Treasure group, based in St. James’s.
New on Wine List Confidential: Kerridge’s Bar & Grill
Tom Kerridge’s new restaurant at London’s Corinthia Hotel boasts a budding, searching, flavour-forward list keenly exploring both England and Germany.
Ornellaia’s Zurich restaurant wins Michelin star
Super Tuscan wine brand Ornellaia’s Zurich restaurant – Ristorante Ornellaia – has been awarded a Michelin star just 10 months after opening.
Atul Kochhar to open new London restaurant Kanishka
Atul Kochhar, the first Indian chef in the world to receive a Michelin star, has announced plans to open a new restaurant called Kanishka in March that will showcase cuisine from India’s lesser-known regions.
Research maps consumer preferences in NZ Sauvignon
A new study that maps the flavours and compounds in Sauvignon Blanc that appeal to the UK consumer may help winemakers gain a competitive edge in an increasingly crowded market, its researchers claim.
16 January 2019: a very sad day for the wine trade
Yesterday was a day of great sadness for the world of wine as news broke that the trade’s most celebrated personality had died aged 61: Gérard Basset.
WLC Eats: The Baptist Bar & Grill
WLC’S resident sybarite, Lucy Shaw, heads to the sumptuous Baptist Bar & Grill at L’oscar hotel in Holborn for divine smoked cod mousse, sinfully good Dover sole and a heavenly Sauternes.
Vegan venue voted London’s favourite restaurant
A vegan restaurant in southwest London with a pay-what-you-like menu has beaten over 18,000 rivals to be voted the most popular restaurant in the UK capital.
Top 10 new London restaurants to watch in 2019
While restaurants are closing with alarming frequency in London, 2019 looks set to be another exciting year for big name chef openings in the capital. We’ve rounded up the 10 most anticipated launches this year and their opening dates.
Top 10 food and drink trends for 2019
From the fermenting fad and canned wine craze to motherless meat, we round up what we predict will be the 10 biggest food and drinks trends in the UK this year.
Lyle’s owners to open wine bar and bakery
In what is set to be a growing trend this year, the owners of Michelin-starred Shoreditch restaurant Lyle’s are to open a bakery that doubles as a wine bar.
Nathan Outlaw to open restaurant with The Goring hotel
London’s The Goring hotel is opening a new restaurant, its first for more than 108 years, with famed Cornish chef Nathan Outlaw at the helm.
UK restaurant closures reach ‘epidemic levels’
The number of restaurants filing for insolvency in the UK has nearly doubled over the last eight years, according to accountancy firm Moore Stephens, with the uncertainty over Brexit and rising business rates contributing to a cocktail of pressures.
Unfiltered: Giovanni Ferlito, The Ritz
Giovanni Ferlito, head of wine and beverages at The Ritz, reveals the perils of maintaining an 800-bin wine list, what it was like to serve Madonna, and why London is simply the best city in the world to be a sommelier.
10 of the best restaurants in London that also have a cracking wine list
We round up some of the top restaurants in London rated by Open Table as among the very best in the UK, which have also earned themselves a spot in Wine List Confidential – a coveted list that ranks restaurants on the strength of their wine lists alone.
Coravin put to the test by 30 somms
Ahead of the Somm360 congress in Montreal last month, Coravin conducted an experiment that proved its wine access system does not adversely affect a wine.
In focus: London sommeliers that make wine
Mirroring the trend of chefs growing ingredients on their own patches of land, a clutch of sommeliers in London are making their own wines in Europe and beyond, to give them something special to sell.
Stevie Parle’s Rotorino to close
Rotorino, chef Stevie Parle’s Italian restaurant in London’s trendy Dalston district, is to close its doors after five years in business.
WLC Eats: Kerridge’s Bar & Grill
WLC’s resident foodie, Lucy Shaw, heads to Tom Kerridge’s debut London venture for ethereal fish and chips, heavenly white Bordeaux and a nostalgic treacle tart.
Mayfair restaurant launches £150 Wagyu sandwich
Raising the stakes in London’s sandwich game, a Mayfair restaurant has created a Wagyu beef Christmas ‘sando’ priced at £150.
Cockburn’s opens private members’ club for Santas
Cockburn’s has launched the first ever Private Members’ Club for working Santas, offering a free Port and a comfortable spot for them to take a break from their duties this festive season.
Dinner by Heston reopens after fire
Dinner by Heston, at the Mandarin Oriental in London, has reopened, six months after a fire forced the closure of the hotel’s restaurants, newly renovated spa and suites.
US restaurant Eggslut headed to London
A US restaurant chain that pays homage to the humble egg is coming to the UK, with the provocatively named Eggslut announcing it is to open its first restaurant in London next year.
Bonhams Restaurant to close
Auction house Bonhams has announced it is to close its Michelin-starred restaurant this December.
Chef injured while shucking oyster awarded €75k
A head chef working at a restaurant in Dublin has been awarded €75,000 after cutting her hand while shucking an oyster.
Marylebone’s 28°-50° Wine Workshop and Kitchen sold
28°-50° Wine Workshop and Kitchen in Marylebone, part of the wine-focused restaurant founded by chef Agnar Sverrisson and Xavier Rousset, has been sold to an undisclosed buyer.
Restaurant opens at UK’s first Pinotage vineyard
Leonardslee Gardens in West Sussex, the site of the UK’s first Pinotage vineyard, has opened its 36-cover fine dining restaurant called Interlude, with a tasting menu featuring ingredients foraged from the 200-acre estate.
Brasserie of Light opens in Selfridges
Brasserie of Light, a new restaurant from Caprice Holdings boasting a giant Pegasus statue by British artist Damien Hirst, has opened inside Selfridges in London.
Fortnum & Mason opens debut restaurant in the City
Fortnum & Mason has opened a new restaurant at The Royal Exchange in the City of London, taking over a space previously occupied by D&D for the past 15 years.
WLC Drinks: The Bar at China Tang
WLC’s resident hedonist, Lucy Shaw, heads to The Bar at China Tang at The Dorchester hotel for exotic cocktails, jaunty jazz and delectable dim sum.
London’s most original wine list gets even quirkier
Although it has already scooped the award for London’s most original wine list, Duddell’s has added even more quirky touches to its drinks selection.
Exton Park creates bespoke rosé for Simon Rogan
Hampshire-based English sparkling wine estate Exton Park has created a bespoke rosé label for chef Simon Rogan to be served at his two Michelin star restaurant, L’Enclume in Cumbria.
WLC Drinks: The Beaufort Bar at The Savoy
WLC’s resident hedonist, Lucy Shaw, heads to The Beaufort Bar at The Savoy, for a night of Gatsby-esque glamour fuelled by Old Fashioneds and live jazz.
Moët & Chandon launches 2012 vintage
Champagne Moët & Chandon has released its 2012 ‘Grand Vintage’, the 74th vintage release from the house and one that reportedly rises above the problems presented by the growing season.
The Crazy Bear Clubhouse launches first Lanson Lounge
The Crazy Bear Group is launching the world’s first dedicated Champagne Lanson Lounge at its Crazy Bear Clubhouse, featuring the producer’s entire prestige range including a magnum of the 1988 vintage for £1,119.95.
Gosset creates new cuvée with Marcus Wareing
The oldest house in Champagne, Gosset, has teamed up with Michelin-starred British chef Marcus Wareing on a bespoke blend for his restaurants.
WLC Eats: Kym’s
WLC’s resident foodie, Lucy Shaw, heads to A. Wong’s second act, Kym’s, in the Bloomberg Arcade, for giant rice crackers, heavenly Ibérico pork char sui, and Sichuan Sours.
WLC Eats: The Greenhouse
WLC’s greedy gourmand, Lucy Shaw, heads to Mayfair stalwart The Greenhouse for smoked sturgeon mousse, an impossibly pretty cep tart, and a Chartreuse-laced soufflé.
Upbeat music in restaurants boosts waiters’ tips
Restaurants that play uplifting music are more likely to see their diners leave generous tips, according to a study by researchers in Austria.
Hot new London bars: October
Our latest round up of drinking dens in the capital includes a canned cocktail bar in Fitzrovia, a vermouth café in King’s Cross, and a bistro championing women winemakers.
Hot new London restaurants: October
Our latest round up of new openings in the capital includes Emily Roux’s debut, Tom Kerridge’s first London restaurant, a modern American venture from The Clove Club team and a Covent Garden jewel named after an English courtesan.
Hartnett: Being female has worked in my favour
Rather than being discriminated against in a male dominated industry, chef Angela Hartnett says that being a woman has actually worked in her favour.
Top 8 extreme restaurants
While a bricks and mortar Michelin-starred venue might be enough to sate most appetites for culinary exploration, these restaurants are in another league, offering the adventurous foodie an extreme dining experience.
Nine outstanding Champagnes for under £50
Following a major blind tasting of Champagne earlier this year, here is a selection of the best Champagnes selling for sub £50 on the market right now.
Simpsons Wine expects record harvest as volumes increase almost sevenfold
Kent-based Simpsons Wine Estate is expecting to harvest 200 tones of grapes this year, up from just 30 tones harvested in 2016 and 2017, as co-owners Charles and Ruth Simpson warn that the shortage of winery space will be a “big issue” for English wine producers in 2018.
The Ivy owner to open restaurant with 24ft crystal statue at Selfridges
Caprice Holdings, the restaurant group behind The Ivy, is to open a new restaurant inside London department store Selfridges called Brasserie of Light, with a 24ft crystal statue by British artist Damien Hirst taking centre stage.
Nine things you should know before studying WSET Level 3
If you’re about to embark on the WSET Level 3 Award, Edith Hancock highlights the things she wishes she’d known before she started.
Mallmann: ‘In 30 years we won’t eat meat anymore’
Francis Mallmann, the Argentine chef who has built his career around cooking meet over an open fire, believes that in 30 years people will no longer eat meat.
London’s new Michelin stars revealed
Six new London restaurants were awarded a Michelin star last night at the unveiling of the 2019 Michelin guide to the UK, while Clare Smyth’s Core in Notting Hill scooped two stars off the bat.
Bleeding Heart to hold dinner with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s winemaker
London restaurant group Bleeding Heart is holding a dinner with Marc Perrin, winemaker at Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s Provence estate Château Miraval, at The Don, where guests can also sample Château de Beaucastel 2000.
Master sommeliers to open private members club for the trade
Master Sommeliers Gearoid Devaney and Xavier Rousset are to open Trade, a members’ club for the hospitality industry, in Soho next month, offering membership for as little as £100 a year.
Usain Bolt to open London restaurant
Having hung up his trainers, Jamaican sprinter and all-round entertainer Usain Bolt is to open a rum-focused restaurant in London’s Liverpool Street next month.
1963 Noval beats Petrus and DRC in London sale
Two sales held by Sotheby’s in London this week netted a combined £2,785,385, underpinned by Bordeaux and Burgundy but with a case of rare Port trumping Petrus and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti to be the auction’s highest-selling lot.
A second Sushisamba is coming to Covent Garden
Samba Brands’ second Sushisamba will open its doors in Covent Garden next month.
‘Sexy’ 2016 Yquem released
The 2016 vintage of Château d’Yquem has been released but despite being hailed as “magical”, “moreish” and “sexy”, is it a good buy?
WLC Eats: Villa di Geggiano
Chiswick dweller Lucy Shaw heads to Villa di Geggiano on the High Road for heavenly burrata, creamy cacio e pepe and an intriguing Tuscan rosé.
Usain Bolt tries Champagne Mumm’s space Champagne in zero gravity
Former Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt took high altitude training to another level yesterday, trying out Champagne Mumm’s Grand Cordon Stellar in zero gravity on board an Airbus Zero-G.
Chef José Pizarro launches Spanish wine range
Keen to get Brits more into Spanish wine, chef José Pizarro has launched his own range of wines from the village of Arcos de la Frontera in Andalusia.
Lord Ashcroft invests further £2.7m in English wine
Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft, the majority shareholder in English winery Gusbourne, has invested a further £2.7 million in the company as it announced it had raised a total of £3.7 million through the issuing of new shares to investors.
Confirmed: Colombian-American investor buys 20% of Petrus
The news emerging from Bordeaux that the storied Pomerol estate Petrus has sold a 20% stake to a Colombian-American investor has been confirmed by the winery.
Gaucho bought out of administration
Argentine steakhouse chain Gaucho has been bought out of administration as part of a rescue deal that will see all restaurants remain open and Martin Williams, the founder and CEO of M Restaurants, step in to help drive its future growth.
Here are the drinks actors will be served at the Emmy Awards 2018
As stars of the small screen gear up for the annual Emmy Awards later this month, a number of premium brands have declared partnerships with the event.
Unfiltered: Neleen Strauss, High Timber
Neleen Strauss, the formidable owner of South African city spot High Timber, on serving Oprah Winfrey, the joy of a plate of anchovies with a glass of Albarino, and an altercation with a Texan with a knack for opening a bottle of wine with a handgun.
Sign up to the WLC newsletter and get 50% off 2018 guide
Wine List Confidential is offering subscribers to its free weekly newsletter a limited 50% discount offering its 2018 print guide, which details the top 100 restaurants in London for wine lovers, for just £6.
Botham’s English fizz will cost £45 a bottle
Having recently launched a range of Australian wines in the UK, Sir Ian Botham has revealed ambitious plans for an English sparkling wine priced at £45 a bottle.
Unfiltered: Katie Exton, Lorne
Katie Exton began her career in wine with English producer Breaky Bottom, and went on to become head sommelier at Chez Bruce and The River Café, before opening her own restaurant, Lorne, in 2017.
Six top-rated organic aperitifs that will make you look like a wine expert
We bring you six outstanding organic aperitifs that are so rare they will make you look like the most knowledgeable eco-conscious wine lover out there.
Rapper Snoop Dogg has penned a cook book
Having gotten a taste of the culinary world through co-hosting Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party with Martha Stewart, rapper Snoop Dogg is now preparing to release his first cookbook, called From Crook to Cook.
London’s top 10 burgers
Nothing hits the spot quite like a burger. In honour of National Burger Day, we round up our 10 favourite pimped-up patties in the capital.
Great British Menu chef in trademark row with former restaurant
Chef James Cochran, who is on the BBC series Great British Menu, is embroiled in a rights dispute with his former employer after the restaurant trademarked his name and has started selling his signature recipes as part of the brand.
UK restaurants battle against 4.8% drop in sales
The UK’s July heatwave saw punters pour into UK pubs, leading to a 2.7% hike in sales, but restaurants struggled to compete, suffering a 4.8% drop in trade, according to the latest figures from the Coffer Peach Business Tracker.
Ducasse fights eviction from Eiffel Tower restaurant
Renowned French chef Alain Ducasse has lodged a lawsuit, fighting against his eviction from the famed Jules Verne Restaurant at the top of the Eiffel Tower, after losing the tender to a pair of rival chefs.
Billecart-Salmon releases 200th anniversary cuvée
Champagne Billecart-Slamon has released its limited edition ‘Bicentenary Cuvée’ exclusively in magnums as it marks its 200th anniversary and has opened new cellars.
WLC Eats: Nobu Shoreditch
Resident foodie, Lucy Shaw, gets nostalgic at Nobu about her first heavenly taste of black cod with sweet miso, at the global restaurant group’s Shoreditch hotel.
New Zealand wines in the UK on-trade
UK consumers are ready to explore the lesser-known expressions New Zealand produces, from Chardonnay to Pinot Gris, and are happy to pay good money to do so. Lucy Shaw reports.
Where to drink Prosecco in London
Three years ago we broke the worrying news of an impending global Prosecco shortage due to the perfect storm of insatiable demand coupled with a short harvest.
Unfiltered: Michael Sager, Sager + Wilde
Michael Sager, the director of his eponymous Sager + Wilde wine bars, takes a breath to detail his many projects, which include an art gallery, the launch of his own mezcal and wine brand, and why London is the single most exciting wine market right now.
Blur’s Alex James moots ‘Britpop’ sparkling wine
The bassist from Britpop sensation Blur has trademarked the name ‘Britpop’ and plans to produce a “British sparkling wine”.
Villandry closes amid reports of £1.5m losses
Villandry is the latest casualty of London’s increasingly challenging restaurant sector, having fallen into administration amid reported losses of £1.5 million.
Meet The Maker: Derek Sandhaus, Ming River Baijiu
With a mission to “Bring baijiu from China to the world”, Ming River is crafted at Luzhou Laojiao in Sichuan province. Douglas Blyde talks to one of its creators about the “vast, and vastly rewarding category” that is baijiu.
Galvin at Windows to close
Mayfair establishment Galvin at Windows, which is located on the 28th floor of the Hilton on Park Lane, is to close after 18 years of business.
WLC Eats: Yong Yi Ting, Mandarin Oriental
Douglas Blyde walks through a forest of 70,000 mosaic tiles to the recently reopened Yong Yi Ting restaurant in Shanghai, where he experiences a “Negroni-scented” tea and “the best red wine in China”.
Fell Brewery releases courgette beer with celeb chef Simon Rogan
The second collaboration between the two Lake District brands is a gose beer fermented in courgette juice.
Sushisamba opens new cocktail bar in London
The company behind Sushisamba has opened a new cocktail bar in London within the Heron Tower in Bishopsgate called Samba Room.
Italy restaurant: ‘renounce technology’ for a free bottle of wine
Customers at the Al Condominio restaurant in Verona, Italy can cash in on a free bottle of wine. All they have to do is hand over their phones.
Squatters move into Gordon Ramsey’s pub
Squatters have moved into the £13m-valued York & Albany pub in London, which is currently owned by chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsey.
Crooked House owners propose rebuilding at new location
The current owners of the demolished Crooked House public house in Staffordshire have applied for it to be rebuilt at another location.
Beavertown initiative aims to safeguard mental health
Heineken-owned Beavertown Brewery has teamed up with the charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) to launch packets of crisps that contain questions to encourage conversations around mental health.
WLC Eats: Jin Sha at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake
Douglas Blyde takes a trip to the Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou, China. During his visit, head sommelier Olive Gao guides him through a list covering everything from lard-washed rice wine to tea.
The airline with an organic-only wine list
French boutique airline La Compagnie’s exclusively-organic onboard wine list is designed to correspond with its “disruptive image”, according to the company.
Kent vineyard battles opposition to wine tastings near graveyard
Nine Oaks Vineyard in Kent is seeking to allay concerns of local residents after facing opposition to its new licence to hold wine tastings, with villagers arguing that nearby mourners could be disturbed. WLC finds out more.