Called Ralphie’s, the restaurant will be located on The Pimlico Road and will be named after Booton’s beloved Maltipoo, Ralphie.
The British-focused restaurant will serve an à la carte menu of modernised comforting classics with a nod to Booton’s upbringing in Colchester. Starters will include crispy cod cheeks scampi with warm tartare sauce; and beef tartare served with potato chips and topped with dried beef heart shavings.
Mains, meanwhile, will include pork and mushroom pie with charcuterie sauce; and moules marinière with a selection of daily specials featuring on the blackboard. Desserts will continue in the same nostalgic spirit, with options including a vanilla soft-serve sandwich, served with warm hazelnut and fudge sauce poured tableside.
A Sunday lunch menu will include rump of Hereford beef with horseradish and watercress; leg of lamb stuffed ‘shepherd’s pie’ Yorkshire pudding with mint sauce and all the trimmings including cauliflower cheese; and a whole stuffed Sutton Hoo chicken with bread sauce and stuffing, designed to serve two to three.
Ralphie’s will comprise a 40-cover dining room, a small outdoor terrace and The Den - a 14-cover basement private dining room overlooking the kitchen. Complete with a bespoke walnut table and a record player stocked with vinyl from Booton’s personal collection, The Den will be available for private functions where guests can enjoy beef wellington carved tableside, for example, followed by banoffee pie to share.
In homage to Booton’s four-legged friend Ralphie, a dedicated menu will feature dishes such as the pig in blanket; crispy fish skin roll; and The Chew Board - all served in bespoke dog bowls featuring the Ralphie’s emblem.
Developed by wine consultant, judge and educator Emma Robinson, Ralphie’s wine list will have accessibility at its heart, with glasses starting from £7.50 and bottles from £32. Drinks expert Pritesh Mody has taken the lead on the drinks list, with cocktails made using seasonal pickles and infusions foraged by the kitchen team, including a freezer-cold Beetroot Martini and Ralph’s Hedgerow Negroni featuring a fennel pickle liquor.
“Ralphie’s has been a long time coming, so I’m genuinely so excited to finally share what I’ve been working on behind the scenes for the past few years - my debut restaurant,” says Booton.
“It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and I can’t wait to finally open the doors and welcome people in. The food is rooted in the things I love to cook and eat, with great produce at the heart of it.
“Most importantly, I want Ralphie’s to feel like a proper neighbourhood restaurant - a place that feels warm, welcoming and full of life, with really good food at the centre of it.”
Booton previously worked at Michelin-starred kitchens of Alyn Williams at The Westbury and Ollie Dabbous’ eponymous restaurant before launching The Grill by Tom Booton at The Dorchester in 2019, becoming the youngest person to take on the role in the restaurant’s long history.