Man at the top: Jeremy King inside the Wolseley
(Picture: Daniel Hambury/Stella Pictures Ltd)Last Friday’s ousting of Jeremy King and Chris Corbin from a business both founded by and named for them is news that has left tempers flared and faces flushed in circles sympathetic to London’s restaurant scene. But it is worth remembering this likely won’t be the end of Wolseley, or the end of Mr King and Mr Corbin.
With Corbin having quietly stepped back from day-to-day duties a decade or so ago, the narrative at present is following his business partner. Those familiar with what’s gone on might want to skip ahead a little but for those in the dark, the plot goes so: after a protracted and lately rather public battle, Corbin & King’s major shareholder Minor International has reportedly paid £60million for the group and its restaurants, outbidding efforts from Mr King (and supporters) himself. It followed Minor, who previously owned 74 per cent of the group, pushing Corbin & King into administration in January. King and Minor had not been seeing eye to eye for some time — King accused Minor of all sorts of treachery (read more here) while Minor said the pair had fallen out over “proposals to recapitalise the company”.
Now Corbin and King themselves are all but entirely gone. In a statement, Minor International said they will focus on “growing the business... without the involvement of Messrs Corbin and King”, while King phrased it so: “I no longer have any equity interest in the business, although for the time being I remain an employee.”
How long remains to be seen. The Guardian are reporting that he has been banned from entering any of the nine restaurants he opened. Minor maintain their “utmost respect” for the pair’s achievements, though evidently “utmost” doesn’t extend to letting the pair keep the business they have had in one form or another for more than 40 years (Corbin & King began in 1981). It seems callous and cold and there are likely many lessons here, but one that’s sadly apparent is: be careful who you hop into bed with, especially if you let them control 74 per cent of said bed.
Much of the support that is there for King is rooted in four things, listed only in a vague order:
- The egalitarian approach to running restaurants, both for diners (the choice is always there to spend a little or a lot) and for staff (C&K places are known to take care of their own, and to be flexible and sensitive to needs such as childcare. They have also, quietly and without much fuss, supported various schemes over the years to take on workers previously in difficut circumstances, including those homeless or struggling with addition. Should this be affected, it would be a loss).
- The restaurants themselves. The pair revived the Ivy, J Sheekey and Le Caprice before leaving them behind and launching the Wolseley, Brasserie Zedel, the Delaunay and others. For some, the names don’t matter so much: it is the association with King & Corbin that does (I often forget the name of Soutine in St John’s Wood, which is close to where I live. I just call it “the Corbin and King place” and people seem to know where to meet). Not all but many of these restaurants changed London, hauled its food forward, made dining out a thing — not just a thing for anniversaries or birthdays but, say, just for breakfast.
- The two men themselves. That the pair modernised London can sometimes bring a fond smile to the lips, especially when they’re seen. These are men of classic cars and serge suits. Their manners, impeccable both, are as tailored and honed as the clothes they wear. They write thank you cards and shake hands and rarely swear. They are courteous and kind, and best of all, it shows as they glide across the floors of their restaurants, smiling, saying hello, admitting you as one might into their home. In short, they look after people. And they passed these tricks onto others.
- After years of turning heel when approached by press, throughout the pandemic King became a spokesperson for and a champion of hospitality. He reassured those around him at a time that scared them most. He led the way.
This is largely why their removal is being mourned. On Friday, King said in an email to the Standard that for the moment he’d be “keeping stumm” on the entire incident, though indicated that lessons had been taken on board.
As for the restaurants, nothing is really known. There are those saying they will boycott them for as long as Minor are in control. I suspect many the hospitality industry will do. Some of their celebrity fans may: Jeremy Clarkson certainly will (on Instagram he wrote, accompanying a picture of him with King: “There is now no point going to London”). Stephen Fry might. An awful many restaurant and food writers are likely to be privately striking the group from their list, unwilling to support the change, and the way it has been handled (though this presents its own moral difficulties because: what will become of the staff?). And more importantly than the writers or actors or chefs who don’t go in — a great many of the restaurants have thrived because they drew in regulars, regulars that have huge reserves of affection for the men behind the name. Some of those may find a new haunt.
But some, probably many, won’t. They’ll like the places too much. Others won’t care, though they might should things start to change (which frankly seems probable given King had such strong personal involvement in the day-to-day running of things). But there will always be newcomers, drawn to the name and with more interest in what’s on the plate or how the room looks than what’s going on with management upstairs. The crowd may change but seats will stay filled. For now, at least — speculation is rife as to what comes next but the fair thing is to wait and see. King’s big fear was his restaurants turning into mega-chains and quality suffering as a result; Minor are yet to give any indication as to what the future holds.
Though Corbin is perhaps likely to retire fully, King will not. He has said it on record many times over. And while he remains an employee for the moment, this seems a situation unlikely to sustain. Where he goes next, or what he does, is anyone’s guess — but whatever it is, expect queues. There is already excitement for what it will be, how it will be done, the size of the two fingers it sticks up. There is a toughness to the man, and no shortage of ideas. The King is dead. Long live the King.
