Hand-forged
abc kitchens, Marylebone listings, best food stalls, Dinings SW3, Sollip, Nappa Dori, flower shops, MORE
RESTAURANTS • First Word
Alphabet soup
The Skinny: From prolific French-American chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, abc kitchens is a slick, veg-forward restaurant within The Emory, the opulent all-suites hotel that opened in Belgravia last year from the group behind The Connaught and Claridge’s.
The Vibe: Like all of Maybourne’s hotels, The Emory feels as exclusive as its postcode, with a discreet main entrance down a side street, a rooftop bar with unparalleled Hyde Park views, and a 10th-floor state-of-the-art cigar room with its own air filtration system. On the ground floor — and featuring a voluptuous, colourful design from Remi Tessier — abc kitchens is more approachable, making it a fun spot for weekend brunches or weeknight dates.
The Food: In New York, Vongerichten’s abc brand is well-known, with farm-to-table abc kitchen (singular), plant-based abcV, and Latin-inspired abc cocina all housed in the same building. In London, abc kitchens (plural) combines all three into one restaurant, with the same commitment to the freshest organic and sustainable produce. This translates to an all-day offering of kale salad with parmesan, tuna tartare with salsa macha, and mains of chargrilled beef tenderloin and a cheddar cheeseburger with herbed mayo. Everything can be shared, from globe artichoke pizza to English asparagus quesadilla. The food here feels cleaner and healthier than your standard French fare (but still, utterly delicious).
The Drink: Head to The Emory Rooftop Bar for a pre- or post-meal cocktail with panoramic views across London, or sip a spring pea and herb martini, or a green juice at the table. There’s also a wine list with French-focused labels and champagnes for every price point.
The Verdict: With snacks from £19, the prices match the postcode, but it’s worth it for a memorable veg-forward meal. –Laura Price
→ abc kitchens (Belgravia) • Old Barrack Yard • Mon-Fri 7-1015a & 12-10p, Sat 7-1015a & 1230-1015p, Sun 7-1015a & 1230-930p • Book.
LONDON RESTAURANT LINKS: Chef Ravneet Gill opens new chophouse Gina’s in Chingford • Greek restaurant mini-chain Mazi coming to Mayfair • East London bar Alfie’s flipping into Mexican-inspired Little Fires next month.
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three for-sale properties in Marylebone that recently came to market:
→ 161A, Seymour Pl (Marylebone) • 4BR/3BA/1R, 147 m2 maisonette • Guide price: £2.25mn • rooftop terrace and opportunity to buy freehold including ground-floor barber shop • Ownership type: leasehold • Agent: Joshua Marks, Park Lord.
→ Welbeck St (Marylebone) • 4BR/3BA/2R, 236 m2 end terrace flat • Guide price: £5.995mn • original fireplace and hidden wine fridge • Ownership type: leasehold • Agent: Mark Collier, Knight Frank.
→ Harley House (Marylebone, above) • 3-5BR/5BA/3R, 432 m2 flat • Asking price: £13.95mn • in prestigious gated landmark building • Ownership type: share of freehold • Agent: Simon Rosenblatt, Aston Chase.
WORK & PLAY LINKS: Inside a South London property with an intriguing former life • Appreciating Wedgewood’s Jasperware as it turns 250 years old • What’s happening with The Earls Court development? • Why workers are leaving the UK.
RESTAURANTS • The Nines
Markets, food stalls
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of London’s best. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@foundldn.com.
Manna (Battersea & Soho), American-style smashburgers, waffle fries in both locations of Arcade Food Hall
Kappacasein (Borough, above), toasted cheese sandwiches, local raclette in Borough Market
Guacamoles (Peckham), impressive recent London’s taco scene entrant in Rye Lane Indoor Market
The Beef Steaks (Bermondsey), steak and chips street food-style, doused w/ chimichurri or béarnaise
Chi Chi + The Pasta Family (Shoreditch), food truck in Spitalfields Market showcasing homestyle pasta
The Frenchie (Hackney & Kings Cross), Broadway Market favourite selling juicy, oversized duck burgers and crispy duck fat fries
2NigerianBoys (Brixton & Shoreditch), hole-in-the-wall serving traditional Nigerian jollof rice paired w/ meat, veggies, or plantains
Tacos Padre (Borough), intimate Mexican-inspired taqueria in heart of Borough Market
Bad Boy Pizza Society (Covent Garden), Seven Dials Market stall w/ New York pizza by pie or slice
WORK • Wednesday Routine
Teach a man to fish
MASAKI SUGISAKI • chef patron • Dinings SW3
Neighbourhood you work in: Chelsea
Neighbourhood you live in: Wandsworth
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I run and own the modern Japanese restaurant Dinings SW3 in Chelsea, and Wednesday morning is normally when we receive a lot of fresh fish and seafood directly from our fishermen in the Southwest of England. As a Japanese chef in London, sourcing the quality of ingredients required for my style of cooking has always been the biggest challenge, but I’m proud to have developed direct networks with sustainable British fishermen. This means my kitchen’s hectic in the mornings, but it’s a super exciting moment for a chef.
What’s on the agenda for today?
I'm in the middle of a four-hands dinner series called Gill to Tail. It’s a sustainable seafood event where we celebrate using every part of the fish. We've already had dinners with some amazing chefs: Jamie Lee from Kødbyens Fiskebar in Copenhagen, and Kyu Jeong Jeon and Duncan Robertson from Bokman and Dongnae in Bristol. I'm now busy planning for next week's edition with Mark McCabe from Henrock in Bowness-on-Windermere. All the chefs share our ethos, and we create a menu together using sustainably sourced ingredients. (Book the McCabe events, next Tuesday and Wednesday, here.)
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Top of my list right now is a restaurant called Sollip, from Korean chefs Woongchul Park and Bomee Ki. I met them at an event outside London and I’m a big fan of their style. It’s a simple, minimal but well-thought-out concept, which is very inspiring. They’re such lovely people too.
Any weekend getaways?
My favourite getaway is a little town called Stockbridge, which is only an hour and a half’s drive away. It’s a very cute town with a beautiful chalk stream filled with fish. I love going there with my friend and fellow chef Valentine Warner to fly fish.
What was your last great vacation?
I’m a big fan of Cornwall. It’s a little far, but totally worth it. I normally visit my fishermen friends there, head out to the sea on their boat and learn their sustainable methods. In return, I teach them traditional Japanese techniques on how to kill seafood to keep its quality. I also visit my friend Dan Cox, who runs Crocadon near Saltash. He’s the most talented sustainable chef I know. He harvests the majority of ingredients himself and creates amazing dishes.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
Hand-forged cutlery from my friend Alex Pole. I met him at an event in Norway and fell in love with his products. Since then, I’ve been doing collaboration events with him every year and have even learned how to forge chopsticks. I love that his products are full of personality. He’s now making whole sets of cutlery, which I’ve ordered and developed with him for the restaurant. I can’t wait to start using them.
GETAWAYS LINKS: The London luxury hotel explosion • New boutique hotel Shepherd Mayfair aims to open by end of year • In West Sussex, new woodland sculpture park lives up to its name at Goodwood Estate • Sneak peeking Destino Five Ibiza following its winter renovation • New 1 Hotel Copenhagen sets August opening • Trending: Coolcationing.
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Shop
Smooth like butter
Unusually for a clothes shop, it was the sweet aroma of cardamom that brought me through the doors of the Nappa Dori flagship store in Covent Garden recently. Following my nose, I found a small cafe serving up fragrant chai and coffee next to the till. The cafe element somehow manages to make the shopping experience much more relaxed.
I found the shop as thoughtful as the chai. The menswear selection is luxe but not overstated, blending traditional Indian design with contemporary concepts — precision tailoring, premium materials, and a restrained, confident aesthetic, somewhere between classic workwear and stylish alternatives for those times where you don’t want to wear a suit. This is the kind of wardrobe that ages really well. I particularly like the twill overshirts and the Chester merino wool jacket, perfect for late summer evenings.
If there’s one thing that separates the well-traveled from the merely mobile, it’s tasteful luggage, and Nappa Dori understands this. They have capsule collections for every kind of trip: I love their Brief Encounter meets Wes Anderson, small Steamer Cabin suitcases, perfect for a weekend away. Nappa Dori specialises in buttery-soft, full-grain leather, the kind I imagine ages into something even better than when you first bought it. –Amy Rose Holland
→ Shop: Nappa Dori (Covent Garden) • 15 Monmouth St • Mon-Sat 11a-7p, Sun 11a-6p.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Headliners
Bath v Leicester • Premiership Final • Allianz Stadium (Twickenham) • Sat @ 3p • section L24, £360 per
LIDO Festival • London Grammar et al • Victoria Park (Tower Hamlets) • Sun @ 4p • VIP garden, £123 per
Romeo and Juliet • Globe Theatre (Southwark) • Sun @ 1p • lower gallery, £72 per
ASK FOUND
A couple of subscriber answers to the prompt, What’s your favourite London flower shop (or flower delivery service):
Gail Smith Flowers and My Little Garden, both in Islington.
And two more PROMPTS for which we are seeking intel:
Who’s your go-to tailor?
What’s your Restaurant of the Summer?
Got answers or more questions? Hit reply or email found@foundldn.com.