This week's openings: Dip in Brilliant, Popina, Scully and more

07 March 2018 by News Desk

All the restaurant and hotel openings from this week's issue

Dip in Brilliant
Chef Dipna Anand has opened her first solo venture, Dip in Brilliant, in London's Chelsea. It will showcase the Punjabi food for which her family's restaurant, Brilliant, is known.

Anand co-owns another 220-cover restaurant in Southall, which her brother Shanker and father Gulu continue to run.

Guests eat from a thali (a metal round platter) and dishes are designed for sharing. The restaurant has been acquired on a two- to three-year lease, after which Anand may look to move it to another central London site, with the possibility of opening further sites.

The Brilliant brand was founded in the 1950s by Anand's grandfather Bishen Dass Anand. Its first site was a restaurant, nightclub and hotel in Kenya, followed by a catering business before the family moved to the UK in 1973.

Kewal and Gulu Anand opened the first Brilliant restaurant on Western Road in Southall in 1975, serving Punjabi cuisine with a Kenyan twist. Starting with just 30 covers, Brilliant now includes a private banqueting suite, a catering business, a cookery school and its own brand of pickles and chutneys.

Opened 20 February
Founder Dipna Anand
Covers 70
Typical dishes Chicken tikka masala; keema peas; paneer makhana; vegetable jalfrezi; karahi gosht
Websitewww.dipinbrilliant.com

Aiyo
After a year of pop-ups, Little Bao Boy has collaborated with a former owner of Boss Burgers to bring the concept to Leeds. Deriving from a Chinese exclamation conveying enjoyment or excitement, Aiyo serves family meals that owner James Ooi grew up eating, with a healthy, modern twist.

Covers 16
Typical dishes Spiced buttermilk fried chicken bao burger; vegetable rice bowls; noodle soups
Websitewww.facebook.com/aiyoLeeds

Imperial Arms
The Imperial Arms in London's Chelsea has undergone an extensive refurbishment, with a new menu celebrating British seasonal produce, with pub classics such as slow-cooked pork belly with fondant potatoes, beer-battered cod and chips and shepherd's pie.

Operator Epic Pubs (Unique Hospitality Management)
General manager Craig Delamare
Head chef James Barlow
Websitehttps://the-imperial-arms.com

Popina
Isidora Popovic, who operates more than 20 London market stalls and whose baked goods are stocked by Harrods and Fortnum & Mason, has opened her first site in London's Mayfair. Dishes will include kedgeree, sandwiches, salads, stews and curries, as well as a range of freshly-baked sweet pastries. Popina comes from the Latin word ‘eatery'.

Covers 20
Founder Isidora Popovic
Websitewww.popina.co.uk

Tonkotsu
Japanese ramen concept Tonkotsu has opened a site at London's Battersea Power Station development. The venue serves craft beer, sake and cocktails, and has a noodle-making machine imported from Japan, so diners can watch the noodle-making process.

Covers 26 indoors; 26 outdoors
Typical dishes Chilli chicken ramen; aromatic duck hiyashi ramen salad; king prawn katsu; shiitake and bamboo shoot gyoza
Websitewww.tonkotsu.co.uk

Scully
Ramael Scully, former head chef of Yotam Ottolenghi's Nopi, has opened a restaurant in London's St James's Market. The menu reflects his heritage, from his childhood in Malaysia to the Sydney kitchens where he trained, and his travels in the Middle East, Russia and Europe.

Chef-patron Ramael Scully
Typical dishes Baby beetroot jerky and green cardamom cream; and crispy corn biscuit, aubergine sambal and bergamot cream
Websitewww.scullyrestaurant.com

La Ferme
French restaurant and delicatessen La Ferme has opened a second site at 154 Regent's Park Road, Primrose Hill. The restaurant offers traditional French dishes using seasonal produce mostly sourced from France. The restaurant follows a debut site in Farringdon.

Head chef Guillaume Dunos
Typical dishes Pork tenderloin stuffed with Corsican cheese; roasted wakame seaweed, kiwi and tarragon mayonnaise
Website www.lafermelondon.com