Latest openings: Birch, Camp Hox, Larry's and more

A look at the latest restaurants, hotels, pubs and bars to open their doors

Birch

​Former Ace Hotel London managing director Chris Penn and business partner Chris King have launched the first property under new lifestyle hotel brand Birch.

The former De Vere Theobalds Estate hotel in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, is billed as a “city escape” that “looks like a hotel, feels like a festival”. Around £8.5m has been invested in transforming the site.

The property sits within 55 acres and features a farm, two restaurants and a bakery in partnership with the Dairy chef-restaurateur Robin Gill, as well as three bars, 20 event spaces, a co-working space, fitness studios, a lido, a pottery workshop and rooms for film screenings, music and art.

The two restaurants are the Zebra Riding Club and the more casual all-day Valeries, serving meat and fish cooked on a grill and sourdough flatbread baked in a wood-fired oven.

Opened 3 August

Bedrooms 140

Owner Aprirose

Operator Performance Hotels

Design Red Deer

Website www.birchcommunity.com

Camp Hox

Ennismore has launched Camp Hox in the grounds of Eynsham Hall in Oxfordshire, offering an experience inspired by the group’s Hoxton hotels. Guests have private showers, breakfast bags and stocked fridges, as well as a port and tonic bar, fire pits and barbecues.

Tents 12

Starting rate Two nights for two people, including a complimentary night at a London Hoxton hotel, £370

Website www.camphox.com

Larry’s

The owners of London restaurants Salon in Brixton and Levan in Peckham have opened a second Peckham site, Larry’s, serving morning coffee and pastries, sandwiches for lunch and sharing plates for dinner.

Owners Nicholas Balfe, Mark Gurney and Matt Bushnell

Design Gundry & Ducker

Typical dishes Veal schnitzel with red cabbage rémoulade and fermented chilli mayonnaise

Website www.larryspeckham.co.uk

The Regent Secret Garden

For the rest of August, the Regent pub in London’s Balham has opened a ‘secret garden’ pop-up using the outdoor area of the school next door, accessed by stepping through a wardrobe. The botanical hideaway has been decked out with festoon lighting, bamboo, flowers, rustic wooden tables and lounge chairs.

Typical dishes Burgers; duck arancini; sticky crispy wings; and vegan jalapeño and cheddar cornbread

Website www.theregentbalham.co.uk

Tavolino

Tavolino has opened its restaurant and 70-cover terrace in London Bridge. Tavolino, meaning ‘small table’, serves simple dishes cooked with produce from across Italy and the UK.

Head chef Louis Korovilas

Design Fettle Design

Typical dishes Hake with ‘nduja and zucchini scarpece; ribeye with oxheart tomato and Gorgonzola bambolini

Website www.tavolino.co.uk

Five Points Mare Street Taproom

East London’s largest independent brewery, the Five Points Brewing Company, has launched its new taproom in the yard and arches of its Mare Street warehouse in Hackney. Open on Fridays and Saturdays throughout the summer, guests can order Five Points beers on keg and cask and Ace pizzas.

Covers 154

Managing director Ed Mason

Website www.fivepointsbrewing.co.uk

Yotel London

Yotel has opened its first central London hotel in Clerkenwell. The 212-bedroom Yotel London has a 120-cover, all-day restaurant and bar Komyuniti, serving street food-inspired snacks, bao buns and flatbreads, as well as a gym and grab-and-go station. Bedrooms feature adjustable SmartBeds with gel-cooled mattresses, rain showers and Smart TVs.

Starting room rate £85

General manager Guillermo Gomez

Website www.yotel.com