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London’s hottest restaurant openings: October 2023
From Georgian dumplings in Fitzrovia to a new Champagne bar in Battersea, these London openings are sure to prove a treat this October.
London Stock – 4 October
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Originally opened in Wandsworth in January 2020, founders Assem Abdel Hady and Andres Bernal have taken stock and moved to the glitz and glamour of Mayfair’s 6 Sackville Street. Head chef Sebastian Rast, previously of Above at HIDE, leads a zero-waste kitchen that offers a seasonal eight-course tasting menu (£85), an à la carte three-course lunch (£40), and, for those in a hurry but also eager for a proper dinner, a three-course pre-theatre menu (£50). Head sommelier Lazaros Engonopoulos has handled the all-important liquid aspect of the experience.
To find out more, click here.
Azzurra – 19 October
A slice of Sicilia on Sloane Street, Aqua Restaurant Group’s Azzurra will be serving dishes inspired by the seafood of Southern Italy, giving a brief, and delicious, glimmer of sunshine in the otherwise grey London autumn. While the raw bar will be serving the likes of Scottish langoustine tartare with Amalfi lemon oil and sea urchin with charred peach, there will be a plethora of heftier options to sate your appetite. A seafood carbonara with mussels would make an interesting primo (just don’t tell the Romans), or, more to this writer’s palate, linguine with crab, chilli, lemon and Sicilian bottarga. Secondi of salt-baked sea bass or grilled swordfish with fennel and orange salad, and an assortment of gelati and other sugary delights are sure to make this journey to Italy a highly pleasant one indeed.
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The Devonshire
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What do you get when you cross a famed London publican, the founder of Flat Iron, and a historic Soho site? Well, hopefully something rather special. Rogers and Carroll’s pub has been in the works for a long old time, but, if the Instagram posts concerning the food are anything to go by (think grilled lobster and a gravy-drenched suet pudding), it will have been well worth it, assuming it does open in October (late autumn is all the information this writer has so far). The 18th century structure once housed a Jamie’s Italian, but it’s being brought back to life a big Soho boozer – we’ll drink to that.
To find out more, click here.
Searcys Battersea – 18 October
“Ahh, the French Champagne,” to quote Orson Welles, and indeed Searcys has delivered exactly that (and over fizz) at its St. Pancras site for 14 years. Now, having opened a few more in the interim, it, and its ‘Press for Champagne’ buttons, will be coming to Battersea Power Station’s Turbine Hall A. The 76-cover restaurant, 15-cover marble topped bar, and semi-private booth will, of course, be offering a selection of Champagnes and English sparkling, and shellfish platters and cured meats that will pair rather nicely.
To find out more, click here.
Kink(all)y
Taking its name from the Georgian dumpling dish ‘khinkali’ that restaurateur Diana Militski fell in love with during a visit to the country, this new opening in Fitzrovia offers its own dumplings, drawing inspiration from Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Chef David Chelidze, of Hedonist, has created his own twists on the khinkali genre, with the likes of wagyu, butternut squash and black truffle, Madagascan prawn with matzoon sauce, and pheasant in a broth of wild mushrooms. Georgian-inspired small plates, like aubergine carpaccio, or smoked beetroot with goat’s cheese and persimmon, will make it a fitting, and filling, feast.
Downstairs, things take a turn at Bar Kinky. Crass jokes aside, Andrew Pruts’ creative cocktails, such as a twist on an Old Fashioned featuring honey, chocolate & ceps, or, Militski’s personal favourite, a Margarita with tequila cacao, beurre noisette, hazelnut & citrus, will certainly liven up Charlotte Street’s subterranean offering.
To find out more, click here.
The Cocochine
Off Bruton Place, there’s a place called The Cocochine, as the Beach Boys didn’t proclaim. In fact, it is named after Mayfair’s Hamiltons Gallery owner Tim Jefferies’ daughter’s nickname. Speaking about his quest for the best ingredients, chef Larry Jayasekara said: “Growing up in a village in Sri Lanka, you understand from an early age how much time and commitment goes into farming great ingredients. As chefs, we have access to some of the finest produce in the world, and I want to support those systems both here and overseas and celebrate them in every menu.” The core of the wine list is from the private cellar collection of Burgundy, Bordeaux, Champagne, and other fine wines. Non-alcoholic alternatives will be fermented, diffused and, yes, distilled in house from a selection of Sri Lankan teas and fruits and flowers sourced from a regenerative farm in Northamptonshire.
To find out more, click here.
Nest – 4 October
Not a new opening but rather a move, Nest, from the team behind the Michelin-starred Restaurant St. Barts, has fledged from its small Hackney home to head to a bigger site near Shoreditch Town Hall. It is also macabrely ironic, given the restaurant being named after a sanctuary for young birds, that it is going all in on game season: fried partridge with XO sauce is certain to be a hit, though maybe not for the partridge. A new ‘one-region’ wine pairing is also being introduced, with Austrian drops chosen for game season, and tipples from across the Loire Valley served throughout the seafood season.
To find out more, click here.
To read about some of last month’s openings, click here.