London restaurant will serve ‘healthy fast food'
John Vincent, the husband of ITN news presenter Katie Derham, is to open a healthy fast-food restaurant on Monday (12 July) at the corner of Carnaby Street and Marlborough Street in London.
Vincent's business partner in the 65-seat licensed restaurant, called Leon, is Henry Dimbleby, who was a chef at the Four Seasons hotel in Mayfair.
The development chef is TV chef Allegra McEvedy, who has cooked at London's River Caf‚ and Good Cook restaurants. She will spend half her time in the restaurant's open-plan kitchen.
Vincent, a former business consultant whose clients included a fast-food chain, said he aimed to raise standards in the fast-food sector "without being worthy or preachy".
"There will be no trade-off between food that is quick, boldly-flavoured, good for you and fairly priced," said Vincent, who added that prices would sit between the big fast-food chains and large casual dining players such as Pizza Express and Caff‚ Uno.
Leon will use fresh, seasonal, locally sourced and naturally flavoured ingredients, avoiding "bad" foods containing animal fats and sugary carbohydrates. It will also aim to incorporate "superfoods", such as oats and sprouts.
The Mediterranean-influenced menu includes fresh grills in flatbreads or in boxes with rice or salad, vegetable-rich salads, meze dishes, gourmet wraps, soups, puddings and cakes.
