First Jamie's Italian in central London to open ahead of plan

Jamie Oliver is set to open his first Jamie's Italian restaurant in central London next month ahead of schedule.

Jamie's Italian Canary Wharf, which will be the chain's fifth branch, was scheduled to launch in the autumn but will now open on 5 August.

The celebrity chef, who launched the chain to critical acclaim in March last year, signed a deal with Canary Wharf Group (CWG) to launch the restaurant in the Churchill Place mall. It will be housed in a 4,174 sq ft site, next to another new outlet, Rocket.

Jamie's Italian is one of a few other high profile openings in Canary Wharf, with Japanese restaurant concept Roka and British group Canteen set to open at Canada Square Pavilion in the autumn.

Oliver said he was delighted to be coming to the area. "It's hugely exciting to be in Canary Wharf as it's such a vibrant, buzzing part of London," he said.

"Whenever I go down to see how the new restaurant is progressing, there's always so much going on and I know that the businesses and the people who live in the surrounding area are going to love what we do at Jamie's Italian.

Jamie's Italian currently has four operating outlets in Oxford, Bath, Brighton and Kingston upon Thames, with further sites in Guilford and Cardiff to follow in September and November respectively.

Oliver is set to launch a flagship branch in Covent Garden next year.

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By Kerstin Kühn

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