Saturday 5 July 2014

What's The Big Deal About The Chiltern Firehouse?

THE CHILTERN FIREHOUSE seems to have taken over as the number one London restaurant for celebrities to dine out and get themselves papped at the same time.

The cream of Welsh A-listers have also been drawn to the exclusive hangout with their photos ending up in the next day's tabloids after being snapped by the paparazzi at the Chiltern Firehouse's imposing black gates.

Mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins, 34, from Neath, who was most recently photographed at the star-studded Nordoff Robbins O2 Silver Clef awards (pic below)  has dined out on more than one occasion in the last couple of months at the restaurant.



She appeared with her husband-to-be Andrew Levitas following a day at the races at Royal Ascot on 19th June and then arrived for dinner again just over a week later.

Meanwhile, model Danielle Lineker, 35, from Cardiff, stepped out alone at the trendy eatery at the end of last month, without husband Gary, who is currently in Brazil, hosting the BBC's coverage of the World Cup.

Danielle, who was invited to Prime Minister David Cameron's Best of Britain's Creative Industries event last week (see pic below),  was also papped at the Chiltern Firehouse as she joined Carly Cole, wife of Aston Villa football star Joe Cole, for a girls dinner.  




And back in May, Danielle was pictured leaving the restaurant with husband Gary just two weeks after their first visit.

Kelly Jones, 40, from Cwmaman, lead singer of the Stereophonics, dined at the restaurant with his wife Jakki Healy on June 3.

So, what is the big deal about The Chiltern Firehouse, and why is it a magnet for the celebs from Wales?

The Clucker's first stop was to visit the restaurant's website http://www.chilternfirehouse.com/ .

This restaurant is so exclusive, the website only has one page. There's a picture of the restaurant, details of the address at 1 Chiltern Street in Marylebone, London, and a phone number and email address to make a reservation.

And the name of André Balazs at the foot of the page. Who is André Balazs?

The Clucker did more digging.

Mr Balazs is a Hungarian-born hotel magnate who owns the Chiltern Firehouse. The hotelier, who also owns the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles and The Mercer Hotel in New York, revamped the Grade II listed former purpose-built fire station into a swanky New York-style brasserie, opening its doors last year.

The 200 capacity restaurant's clientele are greeted by top-hatted doormen and escorted through a garden courtyard to their tables. 

Once inside, they are able to see a busy open kitchen, high ceilings, large mirrors and low-hanging lights.

Tracey MacLeod, The Independent's restaurant critic, described the inside of the restaurant in her review. 

She said: "There's a NYC vibe to the place, with its sharply-costumed greeters and throngs of beautiful rich people (no place here for the unconventionally shaped).

"The dining room, too, doesn't look like anywhere else in town. They've kept the huge firehouse doors, giving an almost rustic feel, while cleverly-placed mirrors create the illusion of infinite space.

"And there's a theatrically open kitchen, in which the full spectrum of cheffly beards are on display."

Who might you clock sitting at the next table? 

David Beckham, Simon Cowell, the One Direction boys, Lindsay Lohan, Nigella Lawson, Kate Moss, Rita Ora, Bradley Cooper, Paloma Faith, Naomi Campbell and Ellie Goulding have all been spotted at the eatery.

So, what's on the menu? 

The kitchen is led by Portuguese head chef Nuno Mendes.

Celebs can choose from culinary delights such as crab-stuffed doughnuts, chargrilled Iberico pork, steak tartare, fried chicken, blackened salmon, the Firehouse Caesar salad, sweet potato pureéd with bourbon, and frozen apple panna cotta with toasted meringue and a herb granita. 

How much do the celebs have to fork out for a meal? 

Clearly, it's not cheap to eat out at the Chiltern Firehouse but apparently it's not over-the-top expensive either.

The Telegraph estimates a main course costs £25 while three courses will set you back about £41. 

According to Tracey MacLeod of the Independent, you can expect to pay around £200 for a dinner for two including wine and service while brunch costs £20 a head. 

The Guardian reckons it will cost you £75 a head with drinks and service.

You might think this all sounds pretty affordable, and you may be tempted to reserve a table. Well, unless you're a celeb or able to date a celeb, you may as well forget about it. 

The Telegraph reported that the Chiltern Firehouse has a strict screening policy that puts famous faces to the front of the queue before us ordinary civilians. 

Tom Parker-Bowles of the Daily Mail, in his review, summed up how difficult it is to get a  table. He said: "The place is hotter than the surface of the Sun. I reckon even God would have to wait for a table." 

You can keep up-to-date with all the latest celebrity and showbiz tittle-tattle from Wales by following the Weekly Clucker on Twitter @weeklyclucker.














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