Even London’s adventurous eaters like a bit of familiarity. (Have you ever seen an empty Starbucks or Pizza Express?) Maybe that’s why new branches of popular chains have been popping up across the City. Some are more inspiring than others, but each has its place and most are likely to outlive some of the more unusual openings we’ve seen this year. If you want to stick to what you know this weekend, here are some new branches of old favourites for you to try:
Tike - Turkish restaurant chain Tike have opened their first restaurant, bar and grill in London. They have 18 restaurants across Turkey and 5 in Europe but despite the expansion their food and service standards have remained high. The London branch is located next to Fenchurch Street station and will be offering charcoal grilled dishes and traditional Turkish fare.
Napket (Piccadilly) – The fourth and largest branch of Napket recently opened in Piccadilly Circus and is the first location to offer table service for breakfast, dinner and afternoon tea. At lunchtime, it’s a self-service eat-in or take-out affair and, despite the sleek décor and glam website, it’s essentially a posh Pret-a-Manger offering quality soups, salads and sandwiches. You can order wine in the evening, though, so it might be worth a try as a post-shopping hang-out.
Natural Kitchen (City) – Another new kitchen, this time in the New Street Square development between High Holborn and Fleet Street. Like the original in Marylebone, it’s part food-store, part feel-good café with an emphasis on free-range, organic...you know the rest. On the menu, the tapas dishes seem a bit pricey at £4.95 each but we like the look of the buttermilk pancakes and NK eggs for brunch!
Villandry Kitchen – Following the success of the original Villandry on Great Portland Street, the team have now opened a slick all-day eatery in Holborn. Comprising bar, bistrot and charcuterie counter; Villandry Kitchen serves breakfast, Provencale-style pizzas (really?), and French classics like steak frites and Croque Monsieur. It’s most likely to appeal to the business lunch crowd but we’re not sure it will draw foodies away from Holborn’s more interesting ethnic eateries.
Masala Zone (Bayswater) – Ok, it’s not the most authentic Indian food you’ll ever eat in London but it’s cheap, it’s fast and it’s pretty reliable. The new site in Bayswater used to be a bank but is now a bright and airy curry canteen promising to feed diners for under £15 a head.
Coming Soon: Look out for The Orange – a new Pimlico eatery from the people behind The Thomas Cubitt and The Pantechnicon; more healthy Pod sites, another Grand Union venue in Kilburn, and the Covent Garden izakaya branch of Hi Sushi Salsa. More about that last one later…
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