Renowned maître d' Jesus Adorno, formerly of Le Caprice in London, will be joining Charlie's restaurant at Brown’s hotel in Mayfair on 1 September.
The move, first reported in the Daily Mail, will see Adorno take up the same role at the five-red-AA-starred, 115-bedroom Rocco Forte hotel. Posting on Instagram, Adorno said he was “over the moon”.
Sir Rocco Forte said: “Jesus is one of the best restauranteurs in the world. I have known him for many years and it is wonderful to have him on board. Jesus will be bringing his great experience and personality, adding pizazz to Charlie’s.”
Adorno had been with Le Caprice in St James for 39 years, having joined the restaurant as head waiter on its opening day in 1981. He became a board member of parent group Caprice Holdings in the 1990s.
The original Le Caprice occupied a site on Arlington St for 38 years, but closed last year as its lease came to an end. The group said in June 2020 that Le Caprice would be "reborn at a new location currently under negotiation", however in October Adorno posted on Twitter that a new location had still not been found. The website appears to have been taken down.
Charlie's opened at Brown’s hotel in September 2019, overseen by chef director Adam Byatt.