Italian restaurant Squisito opens in Lewes
Launched last month, Squisito (meaning delicious) is on the ground floor of the Needlemakers building in a space that was once home to a vegan café.
The 'inauthentically Italian' venture is currently open from 9am to 4pm for breakfast and lunch serving a freshly-prepared but limited menu focused on focaccia sandwiches.
Former The Curlew chef chef Chris Chater is currently working unaided in the kitchen, but from next month he will be joined by fellow co-owners Sam (his wife), Harry Fields and Sally Murphy.
Their arrival will see the menu extended, with Fields working with Chater in the kitchen and Murphy overseeing front of house and the 40-cover restaurant's wine list.
An experienced chartered accountant, Sam will oversee the Squisito's finances.
"We have some really cool plans for the evening. Initially we will open on Thursday and Friday night only but we will look to extend that. Our menu will be focused on sliced-to-order cured meats, small plates and freshly-made pasta," says Chater, whose CV prior to working with The Curlew and The Small Holding chef Will Devlin includes Gordon Ramsay's Maze and Thackeray's Restaurant in Tunbridge Wells.
"The selection won't be huge and the dishes will be simple but we will be focused on quality. I'm also in the process of making my own pancetta and guanciale (cured pork jowl)."
Both Fields - whose cooking CV includes Michelin-starred West Sussex restaurant Interlude and The Small Holding in Kent - and Murphy currently hold senior roles at The Beacon in Tunbridge Wells.
The latter studied wine at university and will use her knowledge of both local producers and vineyards on the continent to curate Squisito's wine list.
"We're hoping we can fill a gap in the market in the town and offer something that's both high quality and a bit different," Chater adds.
Earlier this month Devlin closed his modern-British restaurant The Curlew in Bodiam, East Sussex, with immediate effect citing 'difficult trading conditions'.
