Busy time last night hopping between parties for Conde Nast Traveller’s Innovation and Design Awards, for which both LRF and our Pierre Koffmann pop-up Restaurant on the Roof at Selfridges were nominated, and then onto the Tatler restaurant awards at The Langham. Bumped into all sorts including Jeremy King, Heston Blumenthal, Rowley Leigh, Phil Howard, Raymond Blanc, Mark Fuller and Tom Aikens. All were asking after the London Restaurant Festival and making their commitments to get involved and support it, which is always encouraging to hear.

I then joined Fay, and her husband Reg, and Wahaca‘s Tommi Miers and her husband Mark at Il Barreto on Blandford St. Such a great place and choc full on a Monday night. We look forward to seeing what they produce for their Festival Menu in October.

On the subject of which, the sign-up is now fully up and running on the website. Please do sign up as soon as you can to make the most of your involvement. It’s quite clear from last year’s LRF that the restaurants who signed up early and got engaged in the festival from the outset saw the greatest benefits from their involvement. It’s just £100 to sign up your restaurant. A very small price to pay for being involved in London’s only genuine restaurant festival designed to embrace all that is great and London’s restaurant industry.

All the very best,
Simon.