Smoke & Salt to open permanent site in Tooting
Founded by chefs Remi Williams and Aaron Webster in 2014, the small plates concept has been operating out of a shipping container site in POP Brixton since 2017.
Williams and Webster are now preparing to close the Brixton site at the end of February, ahead of the move to Tooting.
Serving a small plates menu, Smoke & Salt blends ‘modern dining and ancient techniques’, with the food centred around brining, curing, smoking and fermenting ingredients.
While the Brixton location can seat 20 to 25 covers, Williams tells BigHospitality the Tooting site will hold between 40 to 50.
“Brixton gave us an opportunity to test the concept and act as a foothold towards securing a permanent restaurant site,” he says.
“With Tooting, we now have the chance to evolve the concept. For example, we want to explore using more preserved ingredients in our food.”
Williams adds that the format of the Smoke & Salt menu will broadly remain the same, with the restaurant continuing to serve a regularly changing seasonal menu alongside the main one.
The current POP Brixton menu includes ‘pigs in blankets’ featuring homemade sherry sausage, bacon crumb, and garlic; celeriac ‘e Pepe’ with yeast, black pepper, and celery leaves; and curried mackerel flatbread with crispy shallots, pickled onions, and mustard saag.
A focus for Williams and Webster at the new site will be to focus further on reducing waste.
“Our ethos is on ensuring the restaurant we create is as sustainable as possible,” says Williams.
“Every area of the operation will be approached with a sustainability-focused mindset, from the food to the fit-out of the restaurant.”
The opening of Smoke & Salt’s first permanent location follows a successful crowdfund campaign late last year, which saw Williams and Webster raise £154,225 from 199 investors in return for an equity stake in the business.
