Tommy Heaney to take over Arbennig Cardiff site

Chef Tommy Heaney has revealed the former Arbennig restaurant in Cardiff will be the site for his first solo restaurant.

He told local blog The Plate Licked Clean that, following a tweet saying he was looking at locations for a restaurant, Arbennig owners Ceri and John Cook got in touch to say they were considering moving on.

The site will close next month and Heaney will take on the site and its sister café the Arbennig Emporium, with plans to reopen later in the summer following a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to refurbish the site.

Heaney, originally from County Antrim, has worked at the 13-bedroom Great House hotel in Laleston, Bridgend, for the past four years, and last year oversaw the relaunch of the hotel's restaurant as Restaurant Tommy Heaney at the Great House.

Sous chef Gareth Denyer will be stepping up to the role of head chef and Heaney will be splitting his time between the new site and the Great House. Heaney’s partner, Nikki Curnock, will manage the new restaurant.

Ceri and John Cook will continue to operate the Lamb & Flag pub in the village of Wick, near Cowbridge.

On their restaurant’s Facebook page they posted: “We have had the most amazing four and a half years at Arbennig, but now is our time to step aside… The closing is of course tinged with sadness, but also huge pride as we are going on our terms.”

Tommy Heaney to open Cardiff restaurant >>

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