Chris and Jeff Galvin set to open two restaurants in Edinburgh
Michelin-starred restaurateurs Chris and Jeff Galvin are to open two restaurants in Edinburgh this summer, at the Scottish capital's famous Caledonian Hilton hotel.
The double Catey winners will open a fine-dining restaurant called Pompadour by Galvin and a more casual Galvin Brasserie de Luxe at the 241-bedroom hotel on Princess Street, which is currently undergoing a £24m refurbishment.
Set to open in August, the two restaurants will mark the Galvins' first foray outside of London and will tie in with the Caledonian's relaunch as a luxury branded Waldorf Astoria hotel. Both restaurants will serve French inspired menus with a focus on seasonal Scottish ingredients.
The Galvins have appointed Craig Sandle as executive chef of both restaurants, who joins from the Michelin-starred Number One restaurant at the Balmoral hotel in Edinburgh, where he was head chef. General manager will be Dale Dewsbury, who previously spent 10 years at the two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles.
"We have worked on this project for over three years and we're thrilled to be opening in Edinburgh," Chris Galvin told Caterer and Hotelkeeper.
"The Pompadour is so engrained in Scottish history and we want to give it a renaissance. We've met with numerous Scottish suppliers and farmers and want to showcase the amazing regional produce and talent of the country. All the chefs up here, from Andrew Fairlie to Martin Wishart, have been really welcoming and have offered their help, which has been great."
Located on the hotel's entresol level, the Pompadour by Galvin will be a 55-seat fine-dining restaurant housed in the legendary dining room, which first opened in 1925. Named after Jeanne Antoinette, Marquise de Pompadour, the courtesan of Louis XV, its listed interiors will remain. Meanwhile the ground floor Galvin Brasserie de Luxe with a dedicated street-level entrance will offer seating for 140 diners, styled on a Parisian brasserie featuring a large circular bar as well as a crustacean counter at the centre.
James Glover, vice president, food and beverage, Europe, Hilton Worldwide, said: "After a fruitful partnership of working with the Galvins at the London Hilton Park Lane, Edinburgh seemed like a natural progression of our relationship. I love their approach to the whole experience of dining out and their lack of pretention."
Glover added that Hilton will also launch a Peacock Alley bar, modelled on the famous original at the Waldorf Astoria New York.
"With the refurbishment we are bringing the Caledonian, that grand old lady of Edinburgh, back to its former majesty. There's a real story to be told and we want the restaurants, especially the brasserie, to be open and welcoming not just to hotel guests and tourists but to locals, too."
The Edinburgh restaurants will be the Galvins' first ventures outside London where they operate Galvin Bistrot de Luxe, Galvin at Windows, Galvin La Chapelle and Café au Vin, and Galvin Demoiselle at Harrods. In 2007, the brothers were forced to shelve plans to open a Brasserie de Luxe at the Waldorf Astoria in London after planning issues over the building scuppered the project.
Galvin Brasserie de Luxe will be the more casual of the two restaurants
By Kerstin Kühn
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