– London-based fresh pasta restaurant Bancone will open its third site next month in the Borough Yards development. The launch, which is billed as Bancone’s ‘biggest opening yet’, will be the first since the group successfully raised more than £900,000 through an equity-based crowdfund late last year to help fuel its expansion plans. While details on the new Borough Yards restaurant remain thin, it has been confirmed the site will feature an open kitchen with counter-top dining, as well as a mezzanine space upstairs for private dining. Bancone executive chef Ben Waugh will oversee the menu, which will include signature dishes such as silk handkerchiefs with walnut butter and confit egg yolk; mafalde with spicy pork and nduja ragù; and cacio e pepe.
– High-profile Japanese sushi chef Shinji Kanesaka has opened a 13-seater omakase restaurant within Mayfair’s 45 Park Lane. Sushi Kanesaka officially launches on 1 July but is already in its soft launch phase. It marks the first restaurant outside the Asia Pacific for Kanesaka, who is best known for his Tokyo flagship – also called Sushi Kanesaka – which has held two Michelin stars since 2018. Housed behind a discreet doorway Sushi Kanesaka brings ‘the mastery of Edomae sushi in its most traditional, purest form’ to London ‘setting a new benchmark for omakase dining in the city’. Sushi Kanesaka is the latest in a flurry of low-cover/high-price omakase restaurants to setup shop in the capital and will carry the highest price tag, with set menus starting at £400 (paired sake costs £150 – £220).
– High-end Mayfair restaurant Amethyst has closed its doors little more than a year after launching following the departure of chef patron Carlo Scotto. In a statement it was confirmed that Scotto had left the Sackville Street restaurant due to differences with his business partners and would be taking a short break to consider his next role. Commenting on his departure, Scotto said: “The last 12 months has been an exciting, yet challenging journey and I’d like to thank my customers for their support. I am going to take short break whilst I consider my options to ensure my next role that allows me to continue to showcase my passion for fine dining and commitment to delivering some of the best food in the UK. Stay tuned, I am excited for the next chapter.”