London food scene says farewell to Richard Vines at Quaglino’s
On Tuesday evening the great and good of the London restaurant world gathered at Quaglino’s to celebrate the life of food writer Richard Vines, who died earlier this year.
Vines was the restaurant critic for Bloomberg for 26 years until his retirement in 2021. Known for his natty sense of style – paisley shirts and a fedora were wardrobe staples – he was known and respected throughout the food world.
The Quaglino’s bash was hosted by Vines’ close friend Martin Williams, the new boss of Evolv Collection (formerly D&D London). Among the 200 guests in attendance were industry titans including Williams’ fellow Toast the City judge James Robson of Fallow, Angela Hartnett, Francesco Mazzei, Tom Aikens, Pierre Koffmann, Michael Caines and Fergus Henderson.
The night had a celebratory atmosphere, with live performances, heartfelt speeches – including one by Michelin starred chef Hartnett – and it even featured cigarette girls handing out badges with Richard’s face on them.
“It’s hard to overstate how generous and well respected Richard Vines was,” Williams told City PM. “He knew the London food scene unlike anyone else and he approached it with warmth and wit. Everybody liked Richard, he just had that easy, confident manner about him.
“We first met at my M Restaurant on Threadneedle Street and I think I disappointed him when I went back to work after an hour and a half. The next time we did a proper six-hour session, which was much more like it! It ended with me teaching Richard how to play pool over beers in Brigadiers!
“I miss him dearly and I know he would have loved to have seen so many people smiling and toasting his legacy.”
Guests at the event enjoyed lashings of Reach Caviar and magnums of Pommery Apanage alongside Renais Gin gimlets, Grey Goose martinis, freshly shucked oysters and langustine cocktails.
Fellow restaurant critics in attendance included the Evening Standard’s David Ellis, Bloomberg’s Bill Knott, The Independent’s Hannah Twiggs, The World Restaurant Awards’ Joe Warwick, the FT Magazine’s Jay Rayner and Tatler’s Fay Maschler.
City PM’s own food writer Steve Dinneen remembers several long and entertaining meals with Vines.
“We first met at Bentley’s. Richard was decked out in a seersucker suit and had the table rapt with his stories about the restaurant scene. Proprietor Richard Corrigan opened an absurdly expensive bottle of wine for us and we ended up staying there till midnight.”