Budgie Montoya's Sarap restaurant to take over 10 Heddon Street

Chef Ferdinand ‘Budgie’ Montoya is to take over the 10 Heddon Street site in London’s Mayfair to launch his new restaurant Sarap Filipino Bistro.

Montoya will replace Fallow in the site, opening on 23 November with a soft launch on 17 and 18 November. The residency is expected to last up to a year.

The opening, run in partnership with the Pepper Collective, follows his more casual 2020 Brixton venue Sarap BAon, which will also remain open.

The Heddon Street restaurant will seat 40 covers with an average spend of roughly £35 per head. Montoya described the menu, which will celebrate his Filipino heritage, as "authentic flavours delivered proudly inauthentically".

Dishes will include Lechon suckling pig served whole stuffed with lemongrass aromatics and truffled adobo pork rice. Traditionally served as a celebration food as special occasions, it must be ordered 48 hours in advance and is designed to be shared between four to six people.

Other small and large plates will include twice cooked adobo pork rice stuffed trotter; smoked aubergines, tomatoes and salted duck egg; and grilled monkfish with sweet and sour red pepper sauce and pickled peppers.

Cocktails will make use of the restaurant’s drinking vinegars, fermentations and kombucha to minimise waste, while lagers and ales will be sourced from local breweries.

Montoya said: “I’m so excited to be opening Sarap Filipino Bistro at 10 Heddon Street, it’s a fantastic site with a great track record in launching some great restaurants. I want to build on our work at Sarap BAon Brixton of championing FIlipino cuisine and showcase our cuisine in a modern and progressive light. This is not about elevation, this is about representation!”

The 10 Heddon Street site has acted as a launch pad for other successful restaurants. Fallow is opening its first permanent restaurant in St James’ Market next month while former resident Manteca opened a Soho venue, which is relocating to Shoreditch in November.