Soho has always been known for its flamboyant social scene. In these times of face masks and safe distancing, most restaurants in the area have adopted an al fresco approach, and the streets are packed with diners and cocktail drinkers. In this context, being in a basement, The Black Book might pass unnoticed; but its setting makes for a much...
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Dinner tables at 5.30pm will be commonplace and tasting menus will be cut short – but could we see the return of the ‘long lunch’? Read the article
The Black Book opens September 10th specialising in wine by glass and brasserie classics. Read the article
The hospitality veterans Gearoid Devaney MS and Xavier Rousset MS will launch on September 10 The Black Book, a new wine bar and restaurant on the site of the former members’ club Trade. Read the article
After opening to non-members for the first time with a residency from Anglo at the back end of last year, Trade is doing away with it for good and flipping into wine bar The Black Book, which will be open to everyone. Co-founders Gearoid Devaney and Xavier Rousset are both master sommeliers so you can bet that the wine will be on point....
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It used to be known as TRADE, the members’ bar for people in the hospitality business, but now it’s being replaced by The Black Book, a new wine bar that’s open to all of Soho. Read the article
Hospitality industry members’ club Trade in London’s Soho is relaunching on 10 September as the Black Book, a restaurant and bar specialising in rare wines and classic brasserie dishes, open to all. Read the article
A members-only club for those in the hospitality industry is being relaunched as a late-night restaurant and wine bar – and it will be open to all… Read the article
I featured on BBC Breakfast in September 2020 to discuss the catastrophic impact the 10pm curfew has had on our industry. Particularly seeing as I had (only 10 days earlier) launched a late-night venue which operates 75% of revenue post 10pm. Click to watch the clip.
Obsessive about their subject, the talent of the new breed of master sommeliers lies in shaping the mood and lining up seamless food and wine matches Read more
I first met, Xavier Rousset in 1997 when he came to work for me as a very young trainee and it did not take me long to realize his enormous potential. I am delighted, albeit not surprised, to see that Xavier has fulfilled all of his past promises. He is now a highly respected restaurateur/businessman, admired for his innovative spirit and his great contribution to the London restaurant scene. Xavier has quite naturally become a huge inspiration for a whole generation of budding restaurateurs/entrepreneurs. I am very proud to have known him for so many years, to watch his career grow and for him to have become such an accomplished professional.