Notting Hill’s acclaimed “open fire” restaurant and music bar Caia is introducing a summer residency this week with a menu inspired by global cuisines.
Co-founder Rishabh Vir has brought in chef Chris Denney to help take charge of the restaurant’s central grill, following the departure of former head chef Jessica Donovan earlier in the summer. Both will cook “the very best seasonal produce” for a menu, they say, of “fat, salt, smoke and spice at its core.”
Denney won acclaim for his playful, hyper-modern food at his now-closed 108 Garage, centering on European gastronomy but encompassing flavours from his travels to Piedmont in Italy, Bangkok, Thailand, and the Indian capital of New Delhi. His most recent restaurant was Fiend, which also was warmly received, but closed last November.
Vir, meanwhile, spent time in the kitchen at Heston Blumenthal’s three Michelin-starred The Fat Duck in Berkshire before joining Thai grill restaurant Kiln. He joined Denney at Fiend in 2021, before opening Caia with the restaurateur Tim Lang last year.
Since then, Caia, on Golborne Road, has become a hotbed for cooking over flame, which remains fashionable in London, alongside live music in Green Room below.
Over the summer residency, running from July 7 until mid-September, smaller plates will include mutton salami served with pickled guindilla chillies; cod’s roe with barbecued crispbread; red prawns with black cherry sriracha; and smoked stracciatella with burnt onions and air-dried beef.
Diners might expect larger plates such as black carrots with sea urchin sauce and lardo; crab with buttermilk and bottarga; salmon belly with scotch bonnets and dried mango; and wagyu ribeye with tomato and gochujang.
“Chris is a special cook, who for me embodies Golborne Road,” said Vir.
“It’s a unique place, full of flair and history. It makes so much sense for him to bring his wealth of experience back to the street. It’s been a lot of fun designing a menu to fit the venue that Caia has become.”
Denney added: “I’ve been cooking around Notting Hill for some time — I love the fact that there are so many exciting restaurants opening now, which is just what the area needed — and Caia is such a brilliant spot. More than anything else, we want to have fun with it.”
