Plans are well underway to restore Whiteleys (now The Whiteley) to its former glory, this time in the form of a hotel, apartments and restaurant. The Bottarga and Nina founders plan to open Effie there, but first to officially announce the opening is Nela.
This is an import from Amsterdam, where there is already a Nela restaurant. The London outpost will follow the same model – a live cooking restaurant with a menu from chefs Hari Shetty and Ori Geller (previously at Nobu in London and Mr Porter in Amsterdam, which has also opened in London).
Nela’s London outpost is massive, taking up around 10,000 square feet of The Whitely (for reference, that’s about the size of the new Market Halls in Paddington). It will reportedly feature a large open kitchen, a “central bar”, a private dining room and an outdoor terrace.
At the moment, not much has been revealed about what exactly will be on the London menu, but if we look at the Amsterdam version it’s a combination of a raw bar, wood-fired pizzas, grilled meats and seafood and a pretty substantial veg section. We’re told the menu will be “redesigned” for London, but one dish we know is definitely coming here is Nilla’s tiramisu, which comes with coffee caviar and is served in its own jar (see above).
We’ll be announcing more details about the venue and menu closer to the opening.
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