Bought a chandalier for the cocktail bar today. Found it in an antiques shop in St. Johns Wood and loved it as soon as I saw it. It’s a 1960’s Murano glass chandalier from Vistosi and is comprised of 82 gorgeous red discs, it’s going to look stunning. There were two that came from a […]
Archive for May, 2007
Tickets to Madrid have been ordered and we fly out on the 31st May and meet Eduardo on the morning of the 1st June. It’s a tough job…
Anton has just heard back from the Madrid office of the Spanish Embassy and we can visit Eduardo’s Foie Gras farm on the 1st June. The farm is in Badajoz which is about a 5 hour drive from Madrid. We’re trying to organise a translator to accompany us and are waiting to hear back.
Just bought an art deco mirror from an antiques fair at Chilford Hall. I’m really pleased with it and just wish the guy had more. The mirror will be going in one of the toilets, most probably the ladies. There won’t be a ‘Ladies’ and a ‘Gents’ as such because space is extremely tight so […]
The recruitment for the front of house is progressing well. I’ve just appointed Monika Bil who will be my front of house supervisor. All I need now is a restaurant manager, so if you’ve got Michelin or Rosette experience don’t be shy, give me a call.
I have just come back from a site meeting and the air conditioning company I had lined up has let me down at the last minute which has caused a few issues which could impact on the whole programme. I can’t believe how unprofessional they have been, I was absolutely fuming […]
I employed my Assistant Manager, Benedict Aranze today which is great news and a real step forward. Benedict will start on the 19th June so more pressure for hand-over to happen on time. I also have 3 kitchen staff (so far) starting on the same day so if you see a group of […]
Had a great day out of the office visiting the Denham Estate, famed for the quality of its Fallow deer. The owner Michael Gliksten made Head Chef, Anton and I feel extremely welcome and personally showed us around some of the 1,200 acre estate.
This really is as good as it gets in terms of animal […]
For the last 3 months my Head Chef, Anton and I have been trying to contact a guy called Eduardo De Sousa who produces an ethical foie gras from his farm in Spain. His company, Partida de Sousa has a web site that leads to a blank link and the telephone number that we’ve managed […]
Just got back from visiting the wonderful Corine and Willem at The Dutch Eel Company. These guys sell the best smoked eel I’ve ever tasted and take real pride in what they do. It’s great to talk to people that have real passion for their produce.
Willem gets his eels from both the UK […]
Finally completed today! It’s been a long 10 months since making my offer but I’ve had the pleasure of dealing with both a college landlord and a developer. My solicitor has since bought a small island in the Caribbean and I’ve got a few more grey hairs.
It’s the first time I’ve seen the […]
Set to launch in July, Alimentum will serve predominantly modern French food with Spanish and Italian influences. The food will be prepared simply, but with passion and integrity.
In Alimentum I wanted to create a restaurant that met with my own expectations and those of my friends and family, by simply combining great food and great […]
