In June 2010 Koffmann’s was opened at the Berkeley Hotel in Knightsbridge, seeing Pierre Koffmann return to the London restaurant scene. Not only was this a return to London but a return to the same hotel which housed his last restaurant – La Tante Claire. The reception that Koffmann has received has been warm to say the least; the Father Christmas lookalike has shown he maintains a strong following in the capital.

Getting there ….

Born in Tarbes France Koffmann spent a lot of his childhood in Gascony, an area and its cooking for which he maintains great affection. In 1963 he started at cookery school and went on to take his first jobs in Strasbourg and Toulon. In was then in 1970 that he moved to the UK and started work for the royal family of the restaurant world in Albert & Michel Roux’s Le Gavroche. From there he then stuck with the Roux family and worked at the Waterside Inn in Bray; the restaurant that has the title for the longest holding of 3 Michelin stars in the UK.

In 1977 he decided it was time to launch his own venture which led to La Tante Claire opening on Chelsea’s Royal Hospital Road. It was only 6 short years before it was achieved the ultimate award of 3 Michelin stars. In 1998 La Tante Claire moved to the Berkeley Hotel and the space in which it was formerly housed was sold to an up and coming chef by the name of Gordon Ramsey who went on to open his flagship restaurant there – which has itself been awarded 3 Michelin stars. Clearly that plot of land is extremely fertile when it comes to cultivating the prestigious stars.

Following its move to the Berkeley La Tante Claire lost one of its coveted stars before Pierre Koffmann decided to call it a day in 2003 following the death of his wife. London then had a long break from the culinary magic that Koffmann had previously provided; it was not until 2009 that Koffmann returned with a pop-up restaurant in Selfridges. What was meant to be 10 days at Selfridges turned into two months; the restaurant being stunningly popular. Having dipped his toe back into the water Koffmann was clearly reminded of the buzz that a restaurant could bring and it was not long before there was talk that he would be returning to his old stomping ground at the Berkeley.

Koffmann’s at the Berkeley is a far cry from the Michelin star chasing La Tante Claire. The menu looks to his childhood and his love for the cooking of Gascony which has a strong influence on the menu. It is a brasserie serving excellent food – however it is not trying to fight for 3 stars. Since its launch it has become hugely popular; with the set lunch often said to be one of the best deals in the capital. The simple but spot-on cooking and excellent service combine to provide an excellent dining experience . Let’s hope that Pierre Koffmann decides to grace London with his presence and cooking for many years to come as he was sorely missed and it feels like he has returned to his rightful home.

Jason Atherton’s decision to leave behind the safety of the Maze brand, his ties to Gordon Ramsey and the not insignificant remuneration was a bold step. In leaving his goal was to launch somewhere that he could call his own. In April 2011, only a year after departing from Maze, Atherton has launched the Pollen Street Social and he has plenty of reasons to be pleased with himself. In the short time since its launched it has had praise heaped upon it by the critics; swiftly making it one of the hottest places to get a table in the capital.

Getting there

Sheffield born Atherton first studied at Boston College in Lincolnshire before starting his career as commis chef at the Country Hotel in Skegness. It was not long before he had progressed to some of the finest kitchens in London – including working under Pierre Koffmann at the three star La Tante Claire, Nico Ladendis at Chez Nico and under Pierre White at his three star restaurant at the Hyde Park Hotel.

Following three years as sous chef at Stephen Terry’s Coast Atherton took on his first head chef role at Oliver Peyton’s Manchester based restaurants Mash and Air. The change from the focus on cooking to one of management was a shock to Atherton; who then decided to travel to Spain to look for experience in Ferran Adria’s El Bulli with its three Michelin stars. Initially offering to work for free Atherton was the first British chef to train at El Bulli and you can certainly see the influences of that training in the restaurants that he has been a part of since.

Following his return from Spain Atherton worked at Claudio Pulze’s Frith Street and collaborated with Pulze again in the opening of L’Anis. In 2002 he started his working relationship with Gordon Ramsey moving out to Dubai to run two restaurants at the Hilton Dubai Creek.

It was after three years in Dubai that Atherton returned to London and launched Maze under the Ramsey umbrella; his take on tapas-like dishes combining classic European ideas with Eastern influences soon became hugely popular and Atherton became a household name. In light of its success the Maze brand soon globalised, opening branches in New York and Prague; before then expanding the name within the UK with the launch of Maze Grill which soon found itself packed.

The maze brand is now huge and continues to have a dedicated following; despite this Atherton was yearning for more. There was only so long that he wanted to work in the shadows of Ramsey and his holdings company – so in April 2010 Atherton parted company with Maze to launch his own restaurant.

In April 2011 he launched the intriguingly named Pollen Street Social in Mayfair. At launch there was a lot in the menu that brought back memories of Maze, namely the sharing idea. There was however a swift change once it was realised that customers did not all want this sharing style. Now the menu sits somewhere in the middle; for those who want it much of the menu can be eaten for a tasting menu or for sharing whilst there is a starter, main, pudding menu on offer for those who want it a little more classical.

The reviews for the Pollen Street Social have been excellent across the board. The style of the place is relaxed and welcoming, shedding much of the pretention and grandeur of Maze and the food is considerably cheaper. That is not to say however that the food is worse than Maze; the food continues to blow socks off with inventiveness and flavour. We can only hope that Atherton keeps going strong.