FOOD & BOOZE NEWS
NEW RESTAURANT FOR THE RA
Not before time, the Royal Academy of Arts is going to be getting the dining room a venue of its stature deserves when restaurateur Oliver Peyton launches his latest there this month. It’ll be joining the dining rooms at the National Gallery, the Wallace Collection and Kew Gardens in Peyton’s clutch of first-rate eateries at major cultural institutions, and opens on 19 Jan. www.royalacademy.org.uk
ASIAN MIXOLOGY IN MARYLEBONE
If you’re looking for January cocktails with a bit of a difference, consider Samarqand, a new bar and restaurant on Thayer St in Marylebone that specialises in cocktails fusing Asian and Russian flavours. There are over 30 on the menu, of which the Moscowpolitan – blueberry-infused vodka, apricot marmalade, lime and cranberry – is something of a stand out.
www.samarqand-restaurant.com
JOHN BURTON RACE GOES TO MARLOW
The charm of tiny country hotels with sensational restaurants was plain for anyone who saw Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon’s programme, The Trip, last month. The latest such venue expecting to become a foodie favourite is Marlow’s Sanctum on the Green, a bijou nine-bedroom hotel where Michelin-starred chef and I’m a Celeb veteran John Burton Race will be providing his expertise as consultant executive chef in two weeks. www.sanctumonthegreen.com