Former Dabbous head chef partners with GM Adam Symonds to open Islington pub
Former head chef of Dabbous Rob Tecwyn is to open a neighbourhood pub in Islington with general manager Adam Symonds, previously of Orasay and Six Portland Road.
Tecwyn, who was most recently senior sous chef at Kerridge's Bar and Grill in London's Corinthia hotel, met Symonds when the pair worked together at the Bull and Last pub in Highgate.
Their new venture, the Baring, will open in May, on a residential street just off Regent's Canal.
It will offer an a la carte menu as well as bar snacks and sharing dishes. It will also serve the traditional Sunday roast and a lunch special of a weekly changing dish and glass of wine for £15.
Tecwyn said: "Opening large, lively restaurants such as Kerridge's reignited a desire to bring such conviviality back to a more local setting. Adam, I knew, shared the same vision: to bring simple, ingredient-led food, cooked well, to the table. To create a space where people can come to eat and drink that is spacious, minimal, yet warm and welcoming, and where they will leave satisfied."
Symonds added: "I believe in the value of serving great produce with respect to the land it comes from. Whether vegetables, meat, wine, or beer this has to be chosen with appreciation for the integrity of the process, placing particular importance on sustainability and non-invasive farming.
"Opening a pub with Rob is an extension of our beliefs as well as a move to adapt to the changing times within our industry; placing staff wellbeing and quality of life at the forefront of a successful business and creating a space that is not only welcoming but also inclusive and inspiring."
Main courses from the opening menu include roast gurnard, Roscoff onion and taramasalata; grilled lamb rump, kofte, aubergine and shishito pepper as well as ricotta gnudi, broad beans and nasturtium.
The bar will serve a rotating selection of keg and cask beers from the small UK breweries, as well as offering a list of sour, Saison and spontaneous fermentation beers by the bottle. Wines will be sourced from independent, low intervention winemakers.
