Glas Swedish tapas restaurant moves to Islington

Southwark's loss is Islington's gain as lease expires and highly-acclaimed Scandinavian tapas concept prepares to move into former Lola's site.

Glas, the Swedish tapas restaurant which opened in Borough Market in March 2005 to much acclaim, has exchanged on a new site in Islington, in the property which used to house Lola's neighbourhood restaurant.

Previously the owners of Glas, Patric Blomquist and Anna Mosesson, had declared their plan was to keep the Borough Market site and turn it into a more casual brasserie, and move the original concept into Lola's. However, Operations Director Robert Saunders said the Borough Market lease expired and they were "unable to negotiate a lease renewal".

The menu, which features small plates of Swedish/ Scandinavian food, will remain largely the same in the new site. However, Lola's is to be given a refurbishment to lend the décor a Swedish flavour.

"It'll be a mixture of Ikea style and Swedish antiques and it'll also feature an elk's head – it'll be very unique," said Saunders. The new incarnation is set to open in early October.

Morfudd Richards, owner of Lola's, is to continue running her ice-cream van, Lola's on Ice, which sells unusual seasonal varieties of ice cream.