A taste of things to come
Like the release of a single before an album, chefs are increasingly starting to run preview projects ahead of restaurant launches. Ben Norum takes a look at how they work and why they’re popping up all over the place
Dining underground Nuno Mendes
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ever before have new openings played such an important part in London’s dining scene; in the days of food blogs and Twitter, the ‘soft launch’ period, which gives chefs a chance to bed in, is well and truly dead. Log on to see what the foodie community is talking about and you’ll find a race to try out the latest restaurant, pop-up, supperclub or street food van before anyone else. But who says you have to wait for a restaurant to open in order to check it out? More and more chefs and restaurateurs are holding prelude projects and preview events before their premises are anywhere near open to the general public. Nuno Mendes was the first high-profile chef to pull the strategy off. At The Loft Project, he cooked an intimate 12-course menu for anyone cool enough to have heard about the underground dining club, all the while trialing dishes for the menu at
20 Scout London scoutlondon.com
Foreword thinker Tom Sellers
Masterchef winner Tim Anderson
Zetter manger Bruno Loubert
his forthcoming restaurant Viajante, which eventually opened over a year later. By the time it did, anticipation was immense and tables were easily filled, despite its off-the-beatentrack location in Bethnal Green. Last November, Tom Sellers replicated the formula. The still lesser-known but highly regarded exNoma chef, whose restaurant Story is due to open up in Bermondsey this March, cooked up a proverbial storm at his Foreword pop-up, with dishes such as bread and butter pudding for starter and pear, parsnip and buttermilk for dessert. Next week, MasterChef winner Tim Anderson will hold a two-night Turning Japanese supperclub at The Prince Arthur in London Fields as a preview of his oriental restaurant, Nanban, which is due to open in a few weeks near Tower Bridge. The prelude project isn’t just for newcomers to the industry, either. Esteemed chef Bruno Loubet
is set to open his second London restaurant, The Grain Store in King’s Cross, this June, but is first giving an appetite-whetting taster at a special one-off dinner at The Zetter Townhouse, where he’ll be cooking a cameo dish from his forthcoming menu. Rochelle Cohen, managing director at leading restaurant PR agency Roche Communications explains some of the appeal: “These previews tend to be intimate and exclusive, and right now in London that’s what dining is all about. These might be restaurant chefs, but for one night they are running a supperclub that’s not about the glamour of a restaurant environment, but just them cooking up close and personal.” They can perhaps be thought of, then, as a little like old-fashioned band fan clubs. While everyone can listen to the latest album or eat at the new restaurant, these special events are the
equivalent of backstage passes or collectable merchandise. The sheer fact that there’s demand for such events – which often come with a hefty price tag – illustrates the rising status of cheffing. “Chefs are increasingly becoming celebrities,” says Cohen. “Not necessarily on a Jamie Oliverstyle global scale, but among the foodie community.” Indeed, with thousand-strong Twitter accounts, personal blogs and no end of guest appearances, the chef certainly isn’t hidden away in the kitchen anymore. How this trend will impact London’s dining scene over the coming months and years remains to be seen. Pop-ups, supperclubs and one-off dining events are already giving permanent restaurants a run for their money, but if food really is the new rock‘n’roll, then perhaps what the industry needs is some truly great acts, rather than more one-hit wonders.