Brown’s to relaunch restaurant as Charlie’s under Adam Byatt

Brown’s hotel is to relaunch its restaurant as Charlie’s on the 9 September under new chef director Adam Byatt.

Under Michelin-starred Byatt (pictured, centre), Charlie’s – named for Lord Charles Forte, the late father of the founder of the Rocco Forte hotel group – will celebrate contemporary British cuisine.

The five-red-AA-star, 115-bedroom hotel has said Byatt’s team, led by head chef Matt Starling (pictured, right), will source high quality ingredients from around the globe, presenting plates of food designed to delight, while embracing a bygone era of service with a sense of theatre.

Byatt said: “Taking this step and joining the team at Brown’s Hotel is a very exciting moment for me, and it feels like a natural progression both professionally and personally. Five-star hotels are part of my heritage; I started my career in Claridge’s when I was 16, and Brown’s is special as my grandfather was a bell boy here during the 1960s.”

Daily specials such as whole poached salmon and glazed Essex gammon will be served from a traditional silver trolley while an a la carte menu will offer fresh, seasonal dishes such as fried courgette flowers with truffle honey, whole 12oz Dover sole grilled or baked in late summer butter, and roasted Yorkshire grouse, blackberries and bread sauce.

Starling, previously of Fera at Claridge’s, will work alongside Owain Atkinson (pictured, left), formerly of Kitchen in Edinburgh, who as executive chef will oversee the wider food offering of the hotel.

Stuart Johnson, managing director of Brown’s, added: “Adam Byatt and Brown’s possess a natural synergy and we are looking forward to what we see as an incredibly exciting culinary journey ahead with Charlie’s”.

Byatt is chef proprietor of Trinity, Bistro Union and Upstairs, all in London’s Clapham. Trinity has held a Michelin star since the publication of the 2017 Guide.

Lord Forte, the father of Sir Rocco, was renowned for creating Trust House Forte, which later became the Forte Group before being acquired by Granada in 1996. He died in 2007 at the age of 98.

• An interview with Adam Byatt will be published in the 6 September edition of The Caterer.