Endo Kazutoshi and Misha Zelman to open restaurant and bar at the OWO

Chef Endo Kazutoshi and Burger & Lobster founder Misha Zelman are to open a rooftop restaurant and sake bar at the Old War Office (OWO) development in London under their Creative Restaurant Group.

The Grade II*-listed Whitehall building, formerly used by Sir Winston Churchill, will be home to nine restaurants and three bars, as well as London’s first Raffles hotel, when it opens to the public in late summer.

This will include the London debuts of French restaurant Café Lapérouse and Milanese restaurant Paper Moon. Mauro Colagreco, the chef behind three-Michelin-starred Mirazur in France, will open three dining concepts at Raffles London.

Kazutoshi and Zelman’s restaurant will reside on the OWO’s rooftop and feature a 60-cover dining room, a chef’s table, an outdoor terrace and a private dining room, while the ground floor sake bar will seat 28 covers.

Although not official restaurants at Raffles London, both sites will be accessible via the 120-bedroom hotel.

The partnership with the OWO marks Creative Restaurant Group’s fifth restaurant in the capital, following on from the Michelin-starred Endo at the Rotunda in White City, Sumi Notting Hill, Humo Mayfair and 20 Berkeley in Mayfair, which is due to launch this spring.

Kazutoshi, a third-generation sushi master, said: “Our new restaurant and sake bar will be an ode to the traditions of Japanese cooking with my personal touch. We look forward to sharing a piece of history with our guests all in the setting of this awe-inspiring building.”

The OWO will also feature 85 private residences, a spa run in partnership with wellness brand Guerlain and a health club.

The building dates to 1906 and was once the site of the original Palace of Whitehall, home to Henry VIII and other monarchs.