Fort Road hotel in Margate to relaunch flagship restaurant
Margate's Fort Road hotel is set to relaunch Daisy Cecil's restaurant as Colina under new head chef Luis Freitas.
Opening on 7 February, the all-day restaurant will serve a daily menu of small and large seasonal plates inspired by Freitas' childhood memories of eating locally cooked food in his Portuguese hometown.
The 35-cover bistro will feature new furnishings such as foresso tables and timber terrazzo table tops, which have been selected by Gabriel Chipperfield, co-founder and developer of Fort Road hotel.
Dishes will include charcuterie and patatas bravas; soused bream crudo; crispy cod cheeks with lemon escabeche and breakfast items such as buttermilk pancakes, spiced apple compote and mascarpone.
Matthew Slotover, co-founder of Frieze magazine, Frieze art fair, Toklas in the Strand in London and Fort Road hotel, said: "We instantly fell in love with Luis' cooking, and with Spain, Portugal and Greece being so often associated with some of the best seafood in the world, it made complete sense to introduce his Mediterranean palate to our waterfront hotel, adding another star to Margate's crown of exceptional fish-forward restaurants.
"As far as we're aware, there's nothing else quite like it in the area – a place you can dip into at all times of the day, for a quick bite, early breakfast or full blown dinner and drinks."
Cecil, who is an alumna of the River Café in London's Hammersmith, joined the hotel for its opening in summer 2022 and served a selection of dishes influenced by old Kent recipe books, as well as food writers Mrs Beeton and Jane Grigson.
