Now that the festive feasting has settled and the last of the eggnog has been poured ceremoniously down the sink, it’s time to gird your stomachs again for the raft of brand-new restaurants opening in London this month. There’s a rather special reopening too, with chef Tom Sellers’ two Michelin star spot Restaurant Story returning on January 12, just in time to celebrate its tenth anniversary with a lavish nine-course tasting menu for a whopping £250 a head.
1. The funny feast with A list comedians
Mam Sham at Here at Outernet, West End
If you manage to secure tickets for this party (supper club queens Rhiannon Butler and Maria Georgiou have a habit of selling out their events fast), then you’re in for a serious treat. Not only will you get a three-course dinner from the incredible likes of FKA Black Axe Mangal, Ling Ling’s x Mambow and Supa Ya Ramen, but you’ll also be treated to a night of possibly distracting belly laughs from comedians Ed Gamble, Rose Matafeo and Crybabies. All profits go to Choose Love and there’s a fresh drop of tickets on January 10 at mamsham.com.
Charing Cross Rd, WC2H 8LH
2. The fancy French bistro
Josephine, Chelsea
Claude Bosi – head honcho of Bibendum in the fabulous Michelin House – and his wife Lucy are set to launch a neighbouring bistro on Fulham Road at the end of the month. Josephine is named in honour of Claude’s grandmother, and will dig deep into the chef’s Lyonnaise roots. So expect rich and rounded full-bodied French flavour that sounds like it’ll give Bouchon Racine a run for its money.
315 Fulham Rd, SW10 9QH
3. The prawn hub
Shrimp Shack, Streatham
Shrimp Shack is a plastic-bibs-at-the-ready kind of joint where seafood is king. The idea is simple – get a tray full of prawns slathered in lemon butter, garlic butter or peri-peri sauce or a splendidly sloppy seafood boils and prepare to get messy. It’s the latest restaurant from the same team as omnipresent dessert bar Creams, so we imagine the idea is for there to be a Shrimp Shack in every corner of the city before long.
20-21 The High Parade, SW16 1EX
4. The meme-friendly pizza
Yard Sale Pizza x Real Housewives of Clapton
Ever eaten a meme? Of course you haven’t, but this collaboration will bring you one step closer to scoffing a social media page. Pizza supremos Yard Sale have joined forces with the Real Housewives of Clapton account to offer up not one, but two, new year pies. There’s ‘Glut’, with chorizo, guindilla chillies and, naturally, Perelló olives, or ‘Glory’, with mixed peppers, tenderstem broccoli, garlic oil, and yes, more Perelló. You can get them as individual 12" pizzas or half and half on an 18" big boy pie. They come with a truffle crisp sprinkle and will be available from January 3-31, with £1 from each sale going to Hackney Night Shelter.
Available at all 11 YSP branches to eat-in and deliver
5. The teeny-tiny (and gluten-free) omakase counter
Juno, Notting Hill
Situated inside the west London branch of Mexican-Japanese fusion restaurant Los Mochis, Juno is an omakase counter that’s Borrowers-like in stature. Seating a mere six people, Juno promises to be gluten and nut free, and will offer 15 petite courses including the likes of Kagoshima wagyu A4 with bone marrow and smoked chillies, as well as seared Hokkaido scallops with caramelised fig and truffle goma. It opens January 11 and costs £180 per person.
2-4 Farmer St, W8 7SN
6. The return to Babylon
Gilgamesh, Covent Garden
You might remember Gilgamesh from its Camden days, a gargantuan ‘Pan-Asian’ celebrity restaurant that opened in the Stables Market in 2006 and rang the death knell for the area's grubby punk and indie kid-ridden heyday. The ultra-camp Babylonian-themed space closed in 2018, but has finally relocated in slightly more demure form at the old Treadwells site. Open now, it’s a mere three floors and 160 covers, with a menu that still draws from China, Japan and southeast Asia – though whether it recaptures its VIP-tastic glory days remains to be seen.
4A Upper St Martin's Ln, WC2H 9NY
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