From an expertly named new pub to yet another new restaurant from the city’s leading third generation sushi master, this week’s small but perfectly formed clutch of new openings is extremely difficult to resist.
The Hero
Love The Bull, Charlbury? Obsessed with The Pelican, Notting Hill? Congratulations: here’s your new favourite pub, cocktail bar and ‘grill room’ (opening slightly later on 3 June) crafted by the same people in Maida Vale. Conceived with sustainability and regenerative farming in mind, the menu on the ground floor promises traditional comfort food such as mackerel pâté and cheese and onion pie, while the Grill Room on the first floor will offer a more elevated dining experience, with dishes including lamb chops with mint and peas, and cod with brown butter cooked over a live fire grill.
Now open. 55 Shirland Rd, W9 (theherow9.com)
The Counter Soho
Showcasing the flavours of the Aegean, Kemal Demirasal’s second restaurant is a brilliant place to stretch out on balmy evenings with saffron and crab ‘orzotto’ (that’s orzo cooked risotto style), Lebanese Kibbeh and delectable Turkish wine. Don’t forget to check out the cocktail and listening bar downstairs, too.
Opens 14 May. 15 Kingly St, W1 (thecounterlondon.com)
Kioku by Endo
Another new opening by Endo Kazutoshi? Oh, go on then. Alongside a selection of sushi and sashimi, expect Mediterranean takes on Japanese flavours and a ‘tuna experience’, which arrives via a highly intriguing purpose-built trolley. Plus, there’ll also be a vast, sun-soaked terrace and a swish new bar, for which lauded ‘saké samurai’ Natsuki Kikuya has curated the largest collection of the rice wine in Europe.
