Theo Randall and Rebecca Mascarenhas to open restaurant together

Chef Theo Randall and restaurateur Rebecca Mascarenhas are teaming up to open a new restaurant in Putney, South London.

Set to launch in September, Bibo (meaning I drink in Latin) will be a neighbourhood Italian trattoria. It will open on the site of a restaurant Mascarenhas has owned since 1995, initially operating as Phoenix before being relaunched as Cantinetta in 2010.

It will be the first venture for Randall outside Theo Randall at the InterContinental London Park Lane, where he has been chef-patron since 2006 and will continue to head. He will oversee the menus for the new restaurant, but a soon-to-be-appointed head chef will head the day-to-day kitchen operation.

Mascarenhas, who originally trained as an actress, said that she was delighted to go into partnership with Randall, who she describes as "a fantastic and wonderful chef".

"I have had huge success working with Phil Howard (in partnership at the one-Michelin-starred Kitchen W8 in Kensington and Sonny's Kitchen in Barnes) and Sam Harrison (Sam's Brasserie in Chiswick) and have decided that I only want to do things with people who I think are terrific," she explained. "So when the opportunity came to work with Theo, I took it."

The former Cantinetta is currently closed for refurbishment and will reopen as the 80-seat Bibo, with additional space for 60 al fresco covers. A meal in the bar will cost around £20 per ahead.

"It will be exactly the kind of place Theo and I like to go casually, with our respective kids."

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