The first images have been revealed of a £10 million City sister restaurant to The Wolseley following the takeover of the celebrity haunt by new owners.
The firm that took over the West End institution after forcing out its founders is due to open the new venue near London Bridge by the end of this year.
A first look at the plans for Wolseley City show the new all-day venue will have many of the features of the original — a 1920s former car showroom on Piccadilly that is arguably London’s most recognisable restaurant interior — although it will be much bigger. Familiar trademark Wolseley touches will include a vaulted ceiling, high archways, huge pillars, byzantine chandeliers, a mezzanine floor and the trademark black, white colour scheme.
Baton Berisha, chief executive of the Wolseley Hospitality Group, insisted the new version would not be a replica but said: “When you walk in you will know you are in a Wolseley.”
The Wolseley opened as a brasserie in 2003 having previously been a Barclays Bank after Wolseley Motors went bankrupt in 1927.
Under the ownership of Jeremy King and Chris Corbin it became of London’s grandest destinations with a roster of celebrity regulars including Kate Moss, the Beckhams, Emma Watson and Sienna Miller. However, the pair were ousted from their hospitality company last year when it was taken over by Thai hospitality group Minor International. Mr King lost out in an auction for the business in what became a legal row with Minor after they fell out over its plans to expand the business.
The new 260-seat restaurant will be in the former House of Fraser department store on King William Street. It will have three bars and two private rooms.
The venue is expected to one the first of up to 10 new Wolseleys in cities around the world such as Dubai and Singapore.
It will open from 7am to 11pm during the week serving breakfast, lunch and dinner —but not the afternoon tea that the original Wolseley is famed for.
