squaremeal.co.uk | 3
Welcome to your spring issue of Squaremeal. I hope you've
noticed that we've had a bit of a spring clean and that you like
the magazine's boxfresh new look. Meg and Lauren, our very
talented design team, have done a brilliant job of creating
something that we feel really reflects the buzz and excitement
of everything to do with eating out in London.
But eating out isn't just confined to restaurants these days
and, in keeping with the fresh and new theme, we've profiled
the six stars of the street food scene who are most likely to make the leap from pop-up to
permanent (p.56). I'd urge you not to wait that long, though, and to check them out as
soon as you can. After all, there's nothing like saying you were the first in line for the latest
restaurant trend, and Filipino barbecue or ice-cream sandwiches might just be it.
Our BMW Best New Restaurant, Hoppers (p.33), is another new departure for us: it's
the first time this prestigious accolade has been awarded to a no-bookings restaurant. If
you'd never dream of queuing for your dinner, think again: they text you when your table is
available so you can go for a drink while you wait - and the food is well worth waiting for.
But we also appreciate that readers still have an appetite (and bonus) for luxury and
whether you're looking for London's most high-end restaurants and hotels to spend the
night in (p.52) - or the most high-end gyms that will stop you showing the effects of the
morning after (p.114) - you'll find them in this issue. As ever: happy eating!
NICKY EVANS
Nicky Evans decided
to base her career
around the thing she
loves most: food. She
has written recipes,
features, columns and restaurant reviews
for titles including Time Out, delicious
and Waitrose Weekend and contributes
to lifestyle blog everyday30.com.
May bank holiday at home or away? I try to
spend it in someone else's home - that
way you get the best of both worlds.
Favourite alfresco spot in London? Sipping a
cocktail outside Grain Store, watching my son
play in the fountains on Granary Square.
Favourite spring flavour? Wild garlic.
Nicky wrote In Season, p.20.
JAMIE MILLAR
A freelance contributing
editor at Men's Health,
Jamie writes about
fashion and fitness for
publications including
Mr Porter, Amuse and Wired. He also pens
(well, types) a column about style for The
Gentleman's Journal.
May bank holiday at home or away? Home,
watching football and Bond films.
Favourite alfresco spot in London? I take
breaks from writing - and squander
my fees on coffee - in the cafés along
Broadway Market.
Favourite spring flavour? Asparagus with
poached eggs on toast for breakfast.
Jamie wrote Perfect Fit, p.136.
STEVE RYAN
Steve is an Irish
photographer based
in London, specialising
in food, drink and
portraiture. He shoots
both editorial and advertising campaigns
and is a co-founder of 40FT Brewery and
contributing editor at Root + Bone.
May bank holiday at home or away?
Freelancers don't have the luxury of
planning, unfortunately.
Favourite alfresco spot in London? It has to
be Rochelle Canteen in Shoreditch.
Favourite spring flavour? Beer!
Steve took the photos for Word on the Street, p.52.
PUBLISHERS Mark de Wesselow, Simon White EDITORIAL Tel: 020 7840 6295
Editor Ben McCormack Acting Deputy Editor Laura Foster Contributing Editor Julie Sheppard News &
Online Editor India Dowley Deputy News & Online Editor Neil Simpson Editorial Assistant Rosie Morris
Intern Megan Vigar Sub Editors Jill Cropper, Phil Harriss, David Mabey, Amy Swales, Katie Wyartt DISPLAY
ADVERTISING Tel: 020 7840 6273 Advertisement Director Charles Meynell Lifestyle Manager Kate
Stephens Account Director, Drinks Adam Wyartt Account Manager, Lifestyle Gianni Buttice DESIGN &
PRODUCTION Tel: 020 7840 6294 Creative Director Robin Freeman Art Director Meg Georgeson Art
Editor Lauren Ozzati Printing Wyndeham Roche MARKETING Tel: 020 7840 6269 Head of Marketing
Rachel Harty Events Manager Chloé Kingham Events Planner Ed Warr Senior Marketing Executive Paul Young
CIRCULATION Tel: 0870 141 6101 COVER: Photographer Nato Welton Hair and make-up Kenny Leung
Nails Stephanie Staunton (both at Carol Hayes Management) Model Michelle (at Nevs Models) Coralline Atoll
ring in gold, £8,500, from the Les Précieuses Corallines collection; Axum ring in gold, £12,000, from the Lucy
in Wonderland collection; L'Exceptionnelle Emeraude cuff in gold vermeil, made to order from £8,000, from
Les Exceptionnelles collection; Would you like a drop of Tej Madame? earrings in gold, price on request, from
the Lucy in Wonderland collection, all by Ornella Iannuzzi, ornella-iannuzzi.com.
A member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations. We believe our facts are correct at the time of going to press, although inevitably information changes, which
means care must be exercised. Reviews are subjective. Neither Monomax Ltd nor its agents or employees can accept liability for omissions or inaccuracies. No
material can be reproduced without written permission of the Publisher. © Monomax Ltd April 2016. ISSN 977-1369264-01-3-43
FOR REVIEWS OF 11,500 BARS AND Reditor@squaremeal.co.uk/p>
PLUS VENUES FOR ALL YOUR EVENTS: squaremeal.co.uk
Published by: Monomax Ltd, Quadrant House, 250 Kennington Lane, London, SE11 5RD Tel: +44 (0)20
7582 0222 Helpline: +44 (0)20 7840 6299 Fax: +44 (0)20 7582 5444 Email: editor@squaremeal.co.uk
CONTRIBUTORS
BEN MCCORMACK, EDITOR
squaremeal.co.uk | 57
56 | squaremeal.co.uk
RESTAURANTS + FOOD
FROM LEFT: RACHEL
JONES, FABIAN CLARK,
RICHARD MAKIN, CELIA
FARRAR, GUY JACKSON,
LEE JOHNSON, SINEAD
CAMPBELL, TOM BROWNE
There was a time, not so long ago, when a pop-up referred only to a type of book, and a van was something you hired when
moving. Now, a new movement has firmly cemented itself (or dragged its Airstream trailer into semi-permanent residency)
in the London food scene: street food. Places such as KERB, Druid Street Market, Street Feast and Hawker House have
become dining destinations that rival even the most hotly tipped bricks-and-mortar opening, and street food has become a
fertile training ground for the chefs of the future. First there was Pitt Cue and Meat Liquor, then came the 'Bao-ist' era, as the cult
steamed bun specialists proved it's possible to convert a cult market following into a dining establishment that's so popular it inspires
lines around the block come rain or shine. Wai Ting Chung, co-founder of Bao, says, "Having a stall allows you to test a concept and
is a cheaper and less risky way to get a business off the ground." There's also a sense that it suits the more interactive (read: informed
by social media) way in which we now eat. Get in early and earn some serious bragging rights by following these six vendors who we're
tipping as the restaurant stars of tomorrow.
Forget chef school and long stages in sweaty,
sweary kitchens. London's booming street food
movement is now the breeding ground for the
hottest restaurants around - and these guys
and girls are the ones to watch out for in 2016
WORD ON
THE STREET
WORDS: AMY GRIER PHOTOGRAPH: STEVE RYAN
squaremeal.co.uk | 115
T
ake a moment to imagine turning
up at a restaurant to find facilities
neglected, the staff inattentive and
the fare distinctly underwhelming.
Imagine then that you had no choice but to
pay full price; in fact, you already had, as
the restaurant had taken the money out of
your account beforehand. This, for years, is
how gyms have typically operated.
"The problem with the fitness industry
has been that in many instances it's been
serving 'inedible food' - until places like
1Rebel came along and disrupted the
market," says Giles Dean, co-founder of
the London-based boutique gym. Walk
into either of its two City locations and
you might mistake it for a hipster café, all
exposed concrete and organic smoothies.
If you can divert your attention from
the gleaming brushed-copper lockers, then
you might notice that the benches in the
changing room are heated, and that towels
are lavender-scented and stored in a Smeg
refrigerator. Spit and sawdust are most
certainly not on the menu.
BOUTIQUE BODIES
Recent years have seen the proliferation
of budget gyms - the workout equivalent
of fast food: cheap, fulfilling a need, but
ultimately a little unsatisfying. However,
in contrast, there's also been an explosion
of 'haute cuisine' fitness.
Where once there was a morass of
similarly priced options around the £30
to £70 mark, monthly fees now range from
£15 to £300. "The mass-market, mid-tier
fitness clubs have sacrificed their brands
by trying to be all things to all people,"
says Dean. "This has polarised the market,
creating opportunities for brands at both
ends of the spectrum."
Someone who would know is Dean's
business partner, James Balfour, son of
the founder of Fitness First. Established
in 1992, the chain peaked at 500 clubs
worldwide but has since shrunk to 366,
despite our growing appetite for wellness.
According to data analysts Cardlytics,
UK spending on gym memberships actually
increased by 44% last year. But our tastes
have changed, explains Dean. We now
demand many of the same things from
working out that we do from eating out:
quality, expertise, pleasing design and, of
course, good Instagram fodder.
"It's much more of an experience," he
says, "and significantly more sociable,
which is why we have an alcohol licence
on site." Yup, if you feel like you deserve
a beer after your session at 1Rebel, then
you can help yourself to a complimentary
Corona - chilled, just like your towel.
Your gym brand is thus an extension
of your personal one. "For most people,
it's not a question of 'Do I exercise?' - it's
'Where and when?'" says Colin Waggett,
the former CEO of Fitness First who left
in 2012 to found trendy spin brand Psycle,
with locations in W1 and Canary Wharf.
A revolution in the
fitness industry has
high-end gyms going
to great lengths to
keep their demanding,
Instagram-loving
customers coming
back for more
WORDS JAMIE MILLAR
We now demand many of the
same things from working out as
we do from eating out: quality,
expertise and pleasing design
LEFT: THIRD SPACE
TOWER BRIDGE.
TOP: 1REBEL'S CHIC
CHANGING ROOMS.
PERFECT
FIT
114 | squaremeal.co.uk
FASHION + LIFESTYLE
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