Impala
Opening: March
The former head chef and co-owner of restaurant Kiln, in Soho, Meedu Saad will open his debut restaurant Impala next spring. The Soho-based charcoal grill restaurant will launch in partnership with restaurant group Super 8, taking influences from North Africa to North London.
Coreus by Clare Smyth
Opening: TBC
Taking up residence at the upcoming hotel Waldorf Astoria Admiralty Arch, Clare Smyth’s Coreus will be the chef’s third London project, joining her three Michelin starred Core by Clare Smyth and her recently opened Corenucopia. The fine-dining restaurant will put the focus on local seafood, spotlighting lesser-known varieties and will feature Smyth’s Whiskey & Seaweed bar concept.
Cafe Boulud
Opening: TBC
Daniel Boulud is making his return to London five years after the closure of his restaurant at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park. Cafe Boulud will join Clare Smyth’s Coreus (see above) as the second F&B offering within the Waldorf Astoria Admiralty Arch. The high-end all-day dining restaurant will offer breakfast and afternoon tea as well as lunch and dinner menus.
Major’s Grill
Opening: TBC
Not content with just bringing its US restaurant to the stars brand Carbone to London, Major Food Group is opening another ambitious venture in the capital. Major’s Grill will this time round be a new concept for the group and will be a ‘glamorous ode to ritzy mid-century dining’ drawing inspiration from the classic London grill ‘blending timeless elegance with dramatic flair’ and will open in Mayfair’s Cambridge House.
Idalia and Pepperbird
Opening: spring
Des Gunewardena’s £10m project opens at the redeveloped Olympia next year. The former D&D co-founder will open 300-cover all day restaurant Idalia as well as Pepperbird, a 70-cover speakeasy, within the 30,000sq ft Pillar Hall. If that wasn’t enough, the space will also house a 500-capacity events space.
Raising Cane’s
Opening: late 2026
Raising Cane’s, the third-largest US fried chicken brand by sales, will make its highly anticipated UK debut in late 2026. Known for its 24-hour-marinated chicken fingers and its viral super-sized sauce portions, the site on the former Angus Steakhouse restaurant between Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square will be the brand’s first European venture, with further openings planned.
Jamie’s Italian
Opening: spring
Jamie’s Italian is making a return to the UK, six years on from its collapse, with a restaurant opening in London’s Leicester Square next spring. Jamie Oliver will revive his Italian brand through a partnership with Brava Hospitality Group, parent company of Prezzo Italian. The deal will be backed by Brava’s majority shareholder, Cain International.
Cloth Cornhill
Opening: late 2026
The team behind London restaurant Cloth have saved the historic Simpson’s Tavern site in the City. The chop house, which dates back to 1757, will reopen as Cloth Cornhill serving the modern British style of food for which Cloth is known with plenty of new dishes alongside chops, steaks as well as a few nods to Simpson’s tradition.
Simpson’s on the Strand
Opening: February
Jeremy King was initially expected to reopen London stalwart Simpson’s on the Strand last autumn, but delays means that it has slipped into 2026. The finer details of King’s long-awaited project are yet to be revealed but expect some old school trolley service to feature as well as a late-night bar.
Kiji
Opening: TBC
It’s all gone a bit quiet but the husband-and-wife duo behind New York’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant Atomix are set to oversee this new elevated Korean barbecue restaurant in Mayfair. Kiji will open at 60 Curzon Street on the site that was once home to Marco Pierre White’s Mirabelle and will ‘embody the same pioneering spirit that propelled Atomix onto the global stage’, and ‘take diners on an unmatched culinary journey’, according to the marketing blurb.
The Devonshire team’s Covent Garden pub
Opening: TBC
The team behind soho super pub The Devonshire are heading to Covent Garden for their next venue. They are converting the former offices of the Lady magazine into a pub and restaurant, although the style of food that it will serve is yet to be revealed.
Tresind
Opening: TBC
The group behind the world’s first three-Michelin-star Indian restaurant is set to open a site in Mayfair. Operated by Passion F&B in Dubai, Trèsind originally opened in 2014 and is described as offering ‘an immersive gastronomic experience that celebrates India’s rich heritage through a modern lens’.
Osteria Vibrato
Opening: March
The creator of The Laughing Heart Charlie Mellor will return with his new Italian restaurant in February. Launching in Soho in partnership with sommelier Cameron Dewar, Osteria Vibrato, named in homage to Mellors’ time as an opera singer, will offer traditional Italian cuisine, including fresh pasta, whole grilled fish and amaretti biscuits baked fresh to order with a 20-minute wait.
Cometa
Opening: February
Ed and Ollie Templeton will take over the existing wine bar site at their chef residency restaurant Carousel with a new contemporary Mexican seafood restaurant. Cometa, meaning ‘comet’ in Spanish, will be located on Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia and will loosely take the shape of a French brasserie-style format, serving top-quality UK day-boat fish and seafood from Carousel’s long-standing suppliers.
Brasserie Angelica
Opening: early 2026
London hospitality management company Kinsfolk & Co announced Brasserie Angelica as the F&B offering for their new Fitzrovia hotel – The Newman. The European all-day restaurant will seat 76 covers in the dining room and a further 24 covers in a separate bar space and on the street-side terrace. The brasserie will be open from breakfast through to late evening seven days a week, featuring a sandwich trolley at lunchtimes.
Padella Soho
Opening: spring
Marking 10 years since the launch of their continually oversubscribed pasta restaurant Padella in Borough Market, Trullo duo Jordan Frieda and Tim Siadatan will open a new site in Soho next spring. The 80-cover venue, spread across two floors, will be the pair’s third site, following their last opening in Shoreditch in 2020.
Burro
Opening: early 2026
Trullo’s Conor Gadd is opening an Italian restaurant in Covent Garden’s Floral Court. Burro, named after the Italian word for butter, will mark Gadd’s first solo venture, and will include a bar and all-season terrace, serving traditional Italian dishes, such as lobster ‘aqua pazza’ and vitello al burro.
Little Julie’s
Opening: January
Following the pop-up’s success, Little Julie’s will open as a permanent fixture in Holland Park next year. Located opposite sister restaurant Julie’s, the space will run as a cafe by day with breakfast and lunch options and as a wine-led space by evening, offering small plates.
Brasserie Olivia
Opening: spring
The French restaurant group La Nouvelle Garde will be making their UK debut with Brasserie Olivia. Founders Charles Perez and Victor Dubillot will open the Parisian restaurant on Sloane Square, offering ‘resolutely homemade’ home-style French cooking using local produce.
Cooper’s Cut
Opening: March
Anne-Sophie Pic’s former restaurant La Dame de Pic will be replaced by a contemporary steakhouse. Cooper’s Cut, opening at the Four Seasons Hotel London at Tower Bridge, takes its name from Sir Edwin Cooper, the British architect behind the celebrated Port of London Authority building, which will house the restaurant.
Jul’s
Opening: early 2026
Mediterranean restaurant and bar Jul’s will make its London debut located in a former bank at the heart of St James’s. Bringing a continued focus on sustainability, the new restaurant will collaborate with farms around London to create a menu that reflects contemporary Mediterranean-style dishes.
Thomas the Brasserie
Opening: January
Thomas Simmons will relaunch his Pontcanna-based restaurant under the name Thomas the Brasserie in January. The restaurant will feature a new look, concept and food but continue with Simmons’ commitment to premium local produce and seasonal ingredients. Simmons will also launch Lofft - an intimate chef’s table dining experience.
Tiella
Opening: January
Dara Klein has found a permanent home for her Tiella Trattoria pop-up on east London’s Columbia Road. Tiella Trattoria & Bar will be a collaboration between Klein and Ry Jessup as a homage to Maria Pia’s, the family trattoria in Wellington, New Zealand, where Klein was raised.
Materia Prima
Opening: TBC
Translating as ‘primary matter’, Victor Garvey’s new Fitzrovia restaurant will serve the best possible ingredients. Located on Great Portland Street, the SOLA chef promises ‘no gimmicks, no dogma, no boundaries - just a relentless pursuit of the top of the top’.
Arcade Covent Garden
Opening: TBC
London-based food hall operator Arcade will add to its Tottenham Court Road and Battersea Power Station venues with a site in Covent Garden. The food hall operator has taken over the former TGI Fridays on Bedford Street.
Kricket Covent Garden
Opening: spring
Initially slated for last year, Rik Campbell’s and Will Bowlby’s latest restaurant will now open early this year. The modern Indian restaurant will be located in Neal’s Yard in Covent Garden’s Seven Dials area and will have room for more than 130 diners. Like Kricket’s Shoreditch site it will be positioned as an all-day restaurant that will have a breakfast offer.
Holy Carrot Spitalfields
Opening: TBC
The Notting Hill plant-based restaurant Holy Carrot will be opening a second site in Old Spitalfields Market. Initially launched as a pop-up before taking a permanent location on Portobello Road, the vegetable-forward concept is set to evolve further with the new site.
Oxmoor Farm
Opening: TBC
While yet to confirm any plans, rumours suggest that Buckinghamshire-based Oxmoor Farm will launch a permanent restaurant on its farmland in the coming year. Over the past two years the farm has hosted chef residencies and opened The Barn restaurant with Tomas Topolar appointed head chef.
Also to come in 2026…
This year we expect to see a number of high-profile openings that are yet to be announced. These include a first solo venture from chef Tom Booton, another restaurant from Adam Byatt, and an ambitious project from Claude Bosi. Another project to keep an eye on include a new fine dining restaurant at Northcote and also expect announcements of big change at a grand London hotel. We also hear David Carter will open a new restaurant in the first half of 2026 and that Artem Login (MOI, ALTA) has lined up a third Soho site.