Tom Kerridge's London restaurant plans scrapped
Kerridge was set to manage a renovated Rib Room Bar & Restaurant and operate it as a standalone site this year.
However, Jumeirah owner Dubai Holdings appears to have changed its intentions for the venue and the renovation, which was due to accompany the relaunch under the celebrity chef, has not taken place.
Kerridge explained that not being involved in the relaunch of the city venue put him in a "very difficult position".
Hugely disappointed
He said: “We are all hugely disappointed that this project is not working out as we wanted since we had exciting plans to create a dining experience that would have celebrated the heritage of the building.
“However, Jumeirah have made a decision to reopen The Rib Room this week without any notification and without the restaurant transferring management.
“The fact that there has been no sign of the planned refurbishment has left us in a very difficult position.”
The Morning Advertiser attempted to contact Jumeirah Carlton Tower but had received no response at time of publication.
New pub venture
Meanwhile, Kerridge is set to open his third gastropub, the Butcher’s Tap in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, in a bid to “bring the high street alive again”.
The new venture, plans for which The Morning Advertiser revealed last year, will be the chef’s third site alongside the one-Michelin-starred Coach and two-starred Hand & Flowers, all in Marlow.
The pub will join together a butcher’s and public house into one, by working as a fully functioning butcher’s shop and a bar during the day, before being turned into a meat-led gastropub after 5pm.
Kerridge said: “We want the Butcher’s Tap to be the heart and soul of Marlow, somewhere you can pop in every week for your usual order that we will have ready for you, but also a place you can have a pint and a hot pork pie straight out of the oven.”
The Coach came fifth at the year’s Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropub list and awards.
