the fat duck

Heston Blumenthal To Open London Restaurant

Filed under: Dining

Famous chef Heston Blumenthal will be opening his first London restaurant in 2010. Blumenthal, who runs the three Michelin-starred The Fat Duck and a gastropub, The Hind's Head, both in Bray, England, will be opening a new restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental in Knightsbridge. Blumenthal's new restaurant will explore his passion for the history of British gastronomy, and the restaurant will be three times the size of The Fat Duck. While it's great to see Blumenthal moving into a more central location we hope he doesn't spread himself too thin a la Gordon Ramsay.

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Tags: heston blumenthal, HestonBlumenthal, london, restaurant, the fat duck, TheFatDuck

Will A Food Poisoning Scare Keep People Away From The Fat Duck?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

Even the world's best restaurants can have their troubles. The Fat Duck in Bray, England, is one of the finest places to eat in the world. Its innovative cuisine has included items like snail porridge, mustard ice cream with red cabbage gazpacho and the Sound of the Sea, a seafood dish served with an iPod, and has propelled chef Heston Blumenthal into celebrity chef territory. But recently the Michelin-starred restaurant was shut down due to a food poisoning scare. Around 40 diners reported feeling sick and even though initial tests came back negative Blumenthal decided to shut down as a precaution.

According to the Independent ,the decision to temporarily close may have cost around £100,000 in lost bookings but the publicity from the news could also have a long term financial effect. Eating at The Fat Duck is an event that people often save up for (the tasting menu is around $185) and plan for months in advance. Blumenthal, who is famous for running a very tight ship, referred to the decision to close as being "incredibly emotional." Will one scare put diners off The Fat Duck? It seems unlikely and if some are foolish enough to surrender their reservations there will likely be eager diners ready to take their place.

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