It’s difficult to think of a better candidate to reboot Creative Restaurant Group’s Mayfair restaurant HUMO - which was rebranded earlier this year after losing its Michelin star - than Theo Clench. There is arguably nobody currently cooking in London with a stronger track record of both retaining and acquiring Michelin stars. When the South Coast-born chef shoots, he doesn’t miss.
Ahead of the pandemic he retained a Michelin star at both Bonhams and Portland following the departure of (then) higher-profile predecessors, before playing a key role in securing a star at Akoko - technically an assist, as Ayo Adeyemi was the named chef when the West African fine dining restaurant won it - and then at his most recent standalone project, Cycene.
After Cycene closed, Clench moved into consultancy, latterly working with HUMO’s owner Creative Restaurant Group. That relationship quickly developed into something more permanent, with Clench recruited to lead a full overhaul of the site with a clear mandate.
“The plan is to win a star,” he says. “I’m not going to beat around the bush on that. But more importantly, we want a busy restaurant. After that, one star, then two stars.”
HUMO - originally launched by Miller Prada in 2023 - closed in March and reopened at the end of last month as IGNI. The St George Street restaurant retains its focus on cooking over fire and, physically, hasn’t changed dramatically. The dining room is still built around its high-spec, open-fire cooking setup. The name IGNI, derived from the Latin ignis (fire), signals both continuity and a reset.
But while the shell is familiar, the offer is now very different: IGNI is a tasting menu-only concept that offers a calmer, more overtly fine dining experience than HUMO, which was a lot more high-energy and casual than most Michelin-chasing restaurants.
“It’s a beautiful space that has had a lot of money put into it. It doesn’t make sense to rip it all up and start again,” Clench explains. “But we’ve updated the tableware and reworked the layout to create more space between tables. It’s a more elevated experience, which means service will feel more refined and interactive.”
The site’s subterranean 10-cover chef’s table will initially serve as overflow and private dining space but is set to relaunch later this year as a more premium, standalone experience, with two chefs cooking even more seasonal menus focused on short-window produce.
The brigade has also been reshaped. Many of HUMO’s previous team followed former head chef Robbie Jameson to his new posting, ALTA, which is just across Oxford Street in Kingly Court. Clench has instead brought in some key team members from Cycene, supported by what he describes as “hungry chefs fresh out of college”.
Coming up at Trinity
Brought up in Brighton, Clench has been cooking since the age of 14, starting out in his home city, including a stint with Ben McKellar at The Gingerman. He soon moved to London, working briefly at The Stafford hotel before joining Adam Byatt’s Trinity in Clapham - a formative experience.
“It was the old, pre-refurb Trinity. A tough kitchen, but Adam was a great mentor, and there were some brilliant chefs there at the time - Angelo Sato, Aaron Potter and Graham Squire.”
He then became sous chef to Tom Kemble at Bonhams in Mayfair. When Kemble left, Clench retained the Michelin star - no small feat for someone in their first senior role, still well under 30 at the time.
After a stint as development chef at The Clove Club with Isaac McHale, he moved to Fitzrovia’s Portland, where he again retained a star originally won by Merlin Labron-Johnson.
Post-pandemic, Clench demonstrated both range and boldness by joining Akoko, which had been opened in 2020 by first time restaurateur Aji Akokomi with an aim to shake up the capital’s West African dining scene with its ‘progressive and elevated’ approach. Despite having no prior experience in the cuisine, he stepped in following the departure of William Chilila and laid the foundations for a star.
Building on Cycene
He followed that with Cycene, earning a star just six months after opening with his precise, controlled and modern cooking. The cooking at IGNI builds on that of Cycene, but with even greater refinement. The focus is on extracting maximum flavour from top-tier produce, with fire used more subtly than at HUMO.
“A lot of open-fire cooking is big, smoky, bold hunks of meat,” says Clench. “I’m going the other way. IGNI is delicate.”
The style blends a classical base with subtle Japanese and Nordic influences, albeit loosely applied. “If I want to put something on the menu inspired by a dish I had in Indonesia, I will,” he says. “There’s a lot going on behind the scenes, but usually it’s just three things on a plate.”
Signature dishes include a gently poached oyster with cucumber and nasturtium; tuna served in three phases, including otoro to be dipped in melted foie gras with chopsticks, followed by a parfait made from the bloodline; and a reworked turbot dish from Cycene, now paired with a deeply reduced, smoked bone sauce, razor clams and lettuce bavarois. A smoked tofu dessert features single-origin chocolate from Papua New Guinea that uses cacao beans roasted over an open flame.
Understandably given Clench’s track record, Creative Restaurant Group is signalling intent with its price point. The eight-course tasting menu is priced at £185, with a five-course option at £135 and a competitively priced three-course lunch at £49.
The brief, however, is not straightforward. While IGNI is a new concept, it risks being perceived as a continuation of HUMO, given the space looks much as it did before and retains its fire-led approach. In a crowded London fine dining market, burning that perception down quickly will be key.
Yet if anyone has the credentials to do it, it’s Clench. Not only is he firmly on Michelin’s radar, but he has also built a reputation for delivering under pressure. Early next year, we’ll find out whether he can make it five in a row.