w london

Spice Market To Open In The W London

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels

London is getting a Valentine from chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. February 14th, 2011 marks the premiere of Spice Market London in the new W London - Leicester Square hotel. This South East Asian-inspired restaurant will be the sister restaurant of the iconic Spice Market in New York's Meatpacking District.

This opening will reunite Vongerichten with members of his original team from his past London restaurant Vong. Chef de Cuisine Tim Tolley was Head Chef at Vong for four years and General Manager Bertrand Pierson was at the helm from 2000-2003. "I'm thrilled to be returning to London and opening Spice Market in the heart of London, Leicester Square. London is such a diverse and vibrant city that I think it will be the perfect place for the European flagship Spice Market," said Jean-Georges.

Spice Market London will serve a larger range of Asian foods and other dishes not served in New York. The restaurant will be open for breakfast ,lunch and dinner. Signature dishes will include: Spiced Chicken Samosa with Coriander Yogurt, Cod with Malaysian Chilli Sauce and Thai Basil and Ovaltine Kulfi, Caramelized Banana and Spiced Milk Chocolate. The cocktail menu features a variety of exotic drinks such as Ginger Margarita, Lychee Raspberry Bellini and a Pineapple Mojito.

The restaurant is set over two floors, with interiors done in warming shades of gold, copper, chrome and wood. The restaurant will have a stunning 'birdcage' gold spiral staircase and 600 custom-designed shimmering wok lamps covering almost every part of the ceiling giving out an attractive low light. The rear wall will host a wall of spices. There will be 70 seats downstairs available for dining, a cocktail lounge and sushi bar. Upstairs hosts 100 seats with an open kitchen and a private room accommodating up to 30 covers.

Tags: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, london restaurants, spice market, w hotel, w london

Helena Christensen Stars In W London Promo Film

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Enigmatic actress and model Helena Christensen is the star of a short film made by W Hotels to tease London's new Leicester Square, W London. Christensen plays fictitious guest Alex Worthington who has a dark little "meet cute" with Adam, a mysterious brooding stranger played by male model David Gandy. It's a step above some of the other short film brand promos I've seen in that it appears to have a story rather than just a collection of music-video-like vignettes. The film, titled, "Away We Stay" was written and directed by Edoardo Ponti and is a bit of a nod to the 1966 classic Blow Up produced by Edoardo's father Carlo Ponti. The hotel isn't the star here but it forms a nice backdrop to the glamorous story which showcases London's chicer side.

[via Breaking Travel News]

Tags: david gandy, Helena Christensen, leicester square, w hotel, W Hotels, w london