Openings

This week's restaurant and hotel openings included Cinnamon Kitchen, 1823 Spinning Block Hotel, Little Havana, Maître Choux Soho, the Blackbird, the Coral Room and the Princess Victoria

 

Cinnamon Kitchen

 

Vivek Singh's Cinnamon Kitchen has opened its first site outside the capital, in the new Westgate development in Oxford. The restaurant offers an all-day menu, with parathas stuffed with cauliflower and Keen's cheddar, keema (spiced minced lamb) or aloo (potato with chilli) for breakfast. Brunch offers classic dishes with a modern Indian twist, such as spicy masala omelettes with homemade pao (bread), traditional smoked haddock kedgeree, bhuna lamb naan rolls and tandoori chicken toasties.

 

Dinner options include à la carte dishes and a seven-course tasting menu. Diners can choose from fresh fish displayed on an ice block centrepiece, or from a trolley of Kerala-spiced lobster soup and flambéed desserts.

 

The drinks menu has a 50-strong wine list that includes orange and organic wines, as well as several British bins, and a cocktail list designed by mixologist Tony Conigliaro.

 

The site features a modern dining room painted in cool tones, a rattan-panelled and marble-topped bar, and an open-plan kitchen.

• Opened 9 November
• Founder Vivek Singh
• Head chef Thangavel Murugavel
• Typical dishes Tandoori king prawns with Bengali turmeric curry; clove-smoked red deer saddle with pickled root vegetable; and chukka-spiced, 35-day dry-aged local beef rump
• Website www.cinnamon-kitchen.com/westgate-oxford

 

1823 Spinning Block hotel

 

Hospitality group James' Places has opened the 1823 Spinning Block hotel, as well as a bistro, bar and grill, following a £10m conversion of Holmes Mill in Clitheroe, Lancashire. The hotel occupies part of the mill complex, which also houses the group's head office and the Bowland Brewery and Food Hall.

 

- Operator James' Places

• Bedrooms 38
• Website www.holmesmill.com

 

Little Havana

 

Cuban bar and restaurant Little Havana has opened in London's Camden. It has a roster of live music nights featuring London-based Cuban musicians on rotation, as well as weekly salsa classes.

 

- Covers 65

• Chefs Raul Jarez Rodriguez and Pedro José Martínez Ferre
• Typical dishes Oven-roasted marinated pork belly with mash potato; and salt cod fritters
• Website www.littlehavanabar.com

 

Maître Choux Soho

 

Master pâtissier Joakim Prat has opened a second Maître Choux, in London's Soho, serving freshly-made éclairs, choux and chouquettes. A bigger site than the first in South Kensington, Maître Choux Soho will have a more spacious seating area and will offer hand-crafted eclairs in lemon meringue and bergamot, Spanish raspberry, and hazelnut and milk chocolate varieties.

 

- Founder Joakim Prat

• Website www.maitrechoux.com

 

The Blackbird

 

The Blackbird, a traditional country pub in Bagnor, Berkshire, has reopened following a refurbishment. Rustic exposed bricks and filament lightbulbs contrast with colourful artwork of landscapes and street art prints.

 

- Owner Dom Robinson

• Typical dishes Wild boar with choucroute and Russet apple; Charolaise beef cheek with parsley snails and mash; and roast sea trout with pommes fondant
• Website www.theblackbird.co.uk

 

The Coral Room

 

The Coral Room bar, described as "an exquisite country house transported to the city", has opened at the Bloomsbury hotel in London. The bar is decorated with 36 pieces from British illustrator Luke Edward Hall, as well as featuring bespoke Murano glass chandeliers and a secluded cigar terrace.

 

- Design Martin Brudnizki

• General manager Giovanni Spezziga
• Bar manager Kevin Fry
• Website www.thecoralroom.co.uk

 

The Princess Victoria

 

The Princess Victoria in London's Shepherd's Bush has reopened following an extensive refurbishment. Built in 1829, the bar is one of the original gin palaces, and it now has a dining room and a private party room, as well as a heated terrace and garden.

 

- Operator Three Cheers Pub Co

• Typical dishes Pearl barley risotto with goats' cheese and beetroot; and garlic
  chicken with fondant potato
• Website www.princessvictoria.co.uk