Tom Cenci to oversee Italian restaurant Mortimer House Kitchen
Called Mortimer House Kitchen, it will draw on Italian influences from Cenci’s family summers spent in Orta San Giulio, Piedmont, and towns along the Amalfi coast.
The menu will start with a selection of Scarpetta and antipasti plates designed to share, followed by larger pasta dishes and classics reimagined, championing both British and Italian produce.
Dishes will include crispy polenta and parmesan mayonnaise; zucchini caesar with parmesan and pangrattato; calamarata, prawns, tomato, chilli; chicken or aubergine parmigiana with marinara sauce (pictured below) with the optional addition of spaghetti with cured egg yolk on the side; and a sirloin steak served on focaccia, with charred onions.
It will also serve a breakfast menu featuring the likes of Italian baked eggs on focaccia; n’duja bruschetta with whipped ricotta and poached eggs; the Caprese muffin served with avocado, burrata and fried egg; and Tuscan beans on toast. A weekend brunch will see the addition of pan dulcis with Amarena cherries; and pancakes with ricotta, Amalfi lemon curd and maple syrup.
“Life in Italy revolves around mealtimes - it’s all about family feasting, preparing fresh ingredients and using the best local produce. I’ve always loved this style of cooking and am excited to welcome people to share this with me and the team this year,” says Cenci.
Mortimer House’s bar manager Massimo Golfetto has worked with Cenci to create a menu of ‘nostalgic, classic cocktails inspired by their Italian heritage’ including the Milano-Bassano made with grappa moscato, Cocchi Torino, Campari and strawberry; and the Alba, a blend of Campari, Kwai Feh, La Yuzu, grapefruit soda and prosecco.
The 90-cover restaurant will sit within Mortimer House, an art deco building and members club based in Fitzrovia. There will be a further 45 covers for al fresco drinking and dining during the warmer months as well as the Conservatory, a private space to the rear of the main dining room that can seat up to 20 guests.
The move comes nearly a year after the successful opening of Nessa, a collaboration between Cenci and Guy Ivesha, the founder of Maslow’s, which is the group behind Nessa and 1 Warwick in Soho as well as Mortimer House.
"The last year has been a big one for Maslow’s with the opening of 1 Warwick in Soho and I am so proud of what we have created with Tom at Nessa,” says Ivesha.
"He is a hugely creative chef and brilliant leader so I am very excited to extend our partnership to Mortimer House Kitchen”.
The restaurant will officially open under Cenci’s direction on Monday 5 February.
