Thomas Carr to open Seafood and Grill restaurant

Thomas Carr of the Michelin-starred Olive Room will be opening his Seafood and Grill restaurant following a successful crowdfunding campaign.

The chef announced his intention to open a second site in Ilfracombe, Devon last week and has hit the £15,000 target with two weeks still to go.

So far 133 backers have pledged £17,920 to fund the restaurant, which Carr plans to launch with his brother Kevin and friend Richard Evans on the former Lamb hotel site in High Street, Ilfracombe, on 15 March.

"We've achieved the target we initially set to make this happen, so it's happening!" Carr posted on the Kickstarter page. However, he said they would not be closing the crowdfund yet, and have added more rewards, launched a competition and urged supporters to keep sharing the page.

The restaurant will offer an à la carte menu upstairs, a grill menu and bar downstairs, dining space in the garden and potentially a barbecue in the summer.

Carr opened his first restaurant three years ago and won a Michelin star in 2016. He formerly worked as head chef at Restaurant Nathan Outlaw at the St Enodoc hotel in Cornwall, and he has also been executive chef at the Coach House by Michael Caines at the Kentisbury Grange hotel near Barnstaple.

Olive Room chef launches restaurant crowdfunding campaign >>

Michelin names 18 new one star restaurants as Fat Duck regains its three-star status >>

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