Karl O’Dell leaves Park Row to join CORD
O'Dell, who recently competed as a finalist in the 2023 National Chef of The Year competition, joins CORD having left his role as executive chef of The Monarch Theatre, the immersive tasting menu concept housed within Soho’s DC-inspired Park Row.
O’Dell, a former head chef at Texure restaurant, worked at Park Row since it launched in 2021.
His departure from the Soho restaurant follows that of Alyn Williams, who stood down as executive chef of the multi-faceted venue’s main brassiere restaurant earlier this year after little more than six months in the job.
In his new role, O’Dell, whose CV also includes a two-year stint as senior sous chef at Gordon Ramsay’s Petrus, will be charged with crafting seasonal menus at CORD that ‘showcase the freshest produce and flavours available throughout the year’.
His new autumn menu, which has already launched, includes Cornish brill with coco beans, dill, mussels and champagne velouté; and Highland venison with farci, beetroot, blackberries and juniper.
“Customers satisfaction is our number one priority,” he says, discussing the new menu.
“We focus on seasonal ingredients and prime products, and we deliver them to perfection.”
O’Dell is one of several new additions to the team at CORD, which launched in June last year.
Others include senior sous chef Justine Bordet, who was previously executive chef at Le Sylvestre in France, which received its first Michelin star within two months of her joining; and junior sous chef Marnix Taghon, who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu with the Diplôme De Cuisine in 2017 and most recently worked as a junior sous chef at Ollie Dabbous’ Hide restaurant in Mayfair.
