DC Comics-inspired restaurant to open on former Marco Pierre White Titanic site
New group Wonderland Restaurants is set to open a restaurant in London's Soho inspired by DC, the publisher behind the Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman comics.
The restaurant, called Park Row, is set to open at 77 Brewer Street in the spring, the site previously occupied by Marco Pierre White's Titanic restaurant.
The restaurant will be the first fully immersive DC-inspired restaurant experience in the world and is a partnership between Wonderland Restaurants, entertainment company Warner Bros and DC.
The individuals behind Wonderland Restaurants include group executive chef Cláudio Cardoso, former group executive chef at Sushisamba. Mark Garston, innovation director (former head of central development at three Michelin-starred Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire) and creative director Mike Bagale (former executive chef of three Michelin-starred Alinea in Chicago in the US) are responsible for menu development.
Park Row will occupy the 18,000 sq ft basement at the Crown Estate's Grade II-listed venue. It will have 330 covers across five restaurants and three bar areas with interiors designed by London-based Ab Rogers Design (ARD).
ARD has designed the interiors to bring DC's famous fictional environments to life, for example Pennyworth's (named after Bruce Wayne's butler, Alfred), will serve historically-inspired British sharing dishes. The Iceberg Lounge, dedicated to Batman comic book villain the Penguin, will be the largest restaurant in the Art Deco dining room featuring an international menu, cocktail bar and live entertainment.
There will also be a Harley Quinn-inspired restaurant and an Old Gotham City speakeasy, serving cocktails and sharing plates. The Monarch Theatre, Park Row's multi-sensory tasting menu experience, will use projection mapping technology "to explore the psychology of heroism through food".
James Bulmer is chief creative officer at Wonderland Restaurants, who founded and owns the group together with private equity investors and son of former Michelin Guide editor Derek Bulmer.
He said: "This is a project many years in the making, with every detail carefully thought out to deliver a unique experience for our guests. Trends in our sector are moving towards fun, immersive and experiential dining and our aim is to demonstrate this on a grand scale with exceptional food and drink to match."
Peter van Roden, senior vice president of Global Themed Entertainment at Warner Bros. Consumer Products, said: "Warner Bros. Consumer Products and DC have been integrally involved in the creative development of the concept, collaborating and contributing to Wonderland's vision for this unique experience and expression of the DC brand. We are hugely excited to see the first immersive DC-inspired restaurant open here in London and wish the incredibly talented team at Wonderland and Park Row all the best for its launch."
