Just opened
Albannach, Trafalgar Square, London
If you crave some of Scotland's culinary delights, you can now get your fill in Trafalgar Square. Albannach will showcase the best of Scotland in the form of a new bar, restaurant, whisky/cocktail lounge and private room spread over 8,000sq ft and three floors.
Opened: 1 January (official launch 1 February)
Head chef: John Paul McLachlan
Food: Based on seasonal produce, with many ingredients imported from Scotland. Dishes to look out for include carpaccio of Angus beef, cullen skink with petits pois, and pot-roasted rump of Highland lamb with sweetbread-chanterelle farce. Puddings include cranachan with soft winter berries served with shortbread, and rich chocolate tart with malt and prune ice-cream.
Seats: 60
Drinks: wine list by Sam Caporn of Wine International, whisky selection by Ian Wisniewski and cocktails from Tony Conigliaro (Roka, Zuma, Isola)
Average spend: £30 (three courses without wine)
Designers: Niall Barnes and Abbie de Bunsen
Address: 66 Traflagar Square, London WC2N 5DS
Tel: 020 7930 0066
The Clubhouse, Chamonix, France
Bar owner extraordinaire Jonathan Downey has now turned his talents to the world of hotels with the launch of a luxury boutique property in the French Alps. The hotel is housed in an art deco Savoyard mansion built in 1927 and recently refurbished to the tune of €1m (£703,000). Members of the London and New York Milk & Honey private members' clubs gain automatic access, while others can buy a range of entry packages. A selection of room styles includes the Myla suite, which is equipped with a custom-made 2.7m bed, views of Mont Blanc and a range of in-room adult entertainment.
Opened: 12 December
Bedrooms: seven
Rates: €50 (£35) per person per night to €195 (£137) for the Myla suite
Food: The hotel's restaurant is open to members and guests and serves everything from breakfast to set menus of healthy, hearty mountain dishes using local produce with a Pacific Rim influence.
Drinks: Cocktail king Dale de Groff has created a slick drinks list in co-ordination with Downey and Darius Sanai. Guests can sip on classic cocktails and spirits, including vintage Armagnacs dating back to the 19th century. Drinks cost about €8 (£5.60).
Address: 74 Promenade des Sonnailles, 74400 Chamonix, Mont Blanc, France
Tel: 00 33 4 50 90 96 56
Circa at Pelham House, Lewes, East Sussex
The team behind Circa on Lewes High Street is moving to a new venue on St Andrew's Lane. The new restaurant is larger and has a bigger kitchen, which will also serve hotel and conference guests at Pelham House. The original Circa remains open for business under the direction of new head chef Alex Firman.
Opened: 6 January
Food: Kick off with piquillo pepper risotto with roasted yam and blue cheese bhaji (£6.50) or fried chicken sausage, seed beans and miso gravy (£6.95) and then head on to jasmine tea-seasoned monkfish, goose-flavoured mash and vanilla stock (£16.50) or Little Warren veal rump with red chilli udon noddles and shiitake mushroom broth (£16.50)
Typical spend: £35 (two courses and wine), £24.50/£27.50 (two/three courses without wine)
Seats: 40-plus
Head chef: Simon Raynor
Address: St Andrew's Lane, Lewes, East Sussex BN7 1UW
Tel: 01273 471333
Deep, London
This new restaurant from Swedish chef-patron Christian Sandefeldt promises seafood in a multitude of forms. The bar will offer the largest range of aquavit (Scandinavian schnapps) in Britain.
Opens: early February
Food: Start with a tuna tartare and crab with chilli mayonnaise, or smoked eel with salad and truffle mash, before moving on to pan-fried Swedish zander with onion gnocchi, roast tomato and sherry, or steamed turbot with grated horseradish, brown butter and chopped egg. Puddings include something called "lots of chocolate" and pear and vanilla panna cotta with Earl Grey sorbet.
Average spend: £30 (dinner, excluding wine)
Capacity: restaurant 80, terrace 100, bar 80 (60 seated)
Head chef: Fredrik Bolin
Restaurant manager: Helene Gest
Address: The Boulevard, Imperial Wharf, London SW6 2UB
Tel: 020 7736 3337
