Noble Inns team up with chef Neil Rankin for Smokehouse opening

Noble Inns, the company behind three London gastropubs, is set to open a fourth called the Smokehouse in Islington with former John Salt chef Neil Rankin in the kitchen.

Noble, run by Scott Hunter and Maria Larsen, already operates the Princess of Shoreditch, the Lady Ottoline near Chancery Lane, and the Pig and Butcher in Islington.

The new site on 63-69 Canonbury Road, Islington, is set to open next month.

Smokehouse will offer around 20 different craft beers, hand-pulled local ales, and an exclusively European wine list from only small family vineyards. It will also be working with the same farms and fishermen as The Pig and Butcher and will introduce some of Rankin's Cornish and London suppliers too.

As the name suggests, fish and meat for certain recipes will be smoked in-house. "The food will have a strong barbeque influence using a real wood and charcoal offset smoker, a bespoke robata grill and green eggs. The quality of the ingredients and traditional cooking styles will be the focus while the style will be defined and gutsy with lots of big flavours and wide-reaching influences," said Rankin.

Typical dishes include lobster and spring onion frittata, fritto misto with romesco, short-rib Bourguignon, pork mixed grill and peppered ox cheek with cauliflower cheese and gravy. Also promised are nightly specials of rib racks and brisket straight out of the smoker, in addition to a bar menu to include foie gras club sandwich, crab on toast and chicken fried ribs.

New John Salt chef Neil Rankin sets out his vision for the menu >>