Profile

First the venerable Pierre Hotel got a $100 million makeover under new owners, the Tata Group’s Taj hotels. Now it gets a branch of London’s Le Caprice, a Piccadilly institution known as much for the scene as the food. Part of an acquisition juggernaut that includes the Ivy and J Sheekey (and stretches from New York to Dubai), the new spot echoes its predecessor’s black-and-white design, punctuated by a series of David Bailey photos. Chef Michael Hartnell arrives via sister restaurant Daphne’s, and spent a year studying past a under London’s Giorgio Locatelli. His Mediterranean-inflected menu displays Britishisms from grilled kippers and Welsh rarebit to kedgeree with poached eggs, plus salads employing lettuce like gem hearts and cos (what the Brits call romaine). There’s shepherd’s pie, Yorkshire pudding, and a proper English breakfast—the third of late, counting fellow hotel-restaurant newcomers the Breslin and the Crosby Bar. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

Related Stories

Featured In

• Adam Platt's Where to Eat 2011 (1/3/11)
• Adam Platt's Where to Eat 2011 (1/3/11)
• Adam Platt's Where to Eat 2010 (1/4/10)
• New York Magazine: New York Restaurant Openings - Le Caprice and Tipsy Parson (11/2/09)
• Fall Preview 2009: More New Restaurants For Fall (8/31/09)