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| Tempo Private Room |
Tempo is a new restaurant & bar offering modern Italian cooking in Mayfair, London, within walking distance of Green Park, Piccadilly and Berkeley Square. In a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere, especially for this part of town, the cooking focuses on superb ingredients, impeccably sourced, handled with care and simplicity.
The driving force behind Tempo Restaurant & Bar is entrepreneur Henry Togna, until recently owner of ‘22 Jermyn Street’, an iconic luxury townhouse hotel which had been in his family since 1915. His vision for Tempo, an intimate 55 seat restaurant with bar and private room, was to create in the centre of London a restaurant with a high level of precise, flavourful cooking and the warm, friendly atmosphere of a reasonably priced neighbourhood restaurant.
He has gathered a young, enthusiastic and very experienced team to bring his vision to life: Japanese Head Chef Yoshi Yamada, always enamoured with Italy, spent 4 years cooking in top restaurants in Sorrento (the 2-Michelin star Don Alfonso), Sardinia and Florence. Additional experience in some of the world’s top kitchens, at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea and with Joel Robuchon in Tokyo, led to his most recent role as sous chef in Corbin & King’s modern Mediterranean restaurant, St Alban.
His cooking at Tempo is at its heart Italian, simply prepared and inspired by his experiences in the different regions of that country. Influenced particularly by his time in Sorrento, Yamada treats his raw ingredients with respect; the freshest, seasonal produce, minimally handled, will take centre stage. With an emphasis on conviviality, to-pick-at cicchetti (Italian small plates) will be served, as well as dishes to share. The wine list is a small, eclectic selection of 65 wines, primarily featuring top small producers from Italy, as well as some exciting finds from elsewhere in the world.
Restaurant Manager, Joanna Dydak comes from the Dockmaster’s House Restaurant, where she was General Manager. The launch team includes Sally Knell, who managed The Private Room at The Ivy for 14 years and launched The Private Room at Scott’s, and Peter Horton, a wine and restaurant consultant, who was on the management teams of Quaglino’s and Smiths of Smithfield, before becoming General Manager of the London Capital Club.
Interior Designer, Daniel Hopwood, whose work can be seen The Berkeley Hotel, the Adam Street Club and many exclusive residences in London, has created a timeless interior in shades of Amalfi blue with brass, bronze, mushroom and cream. The lighting is soft and enhanced by lustrous metallics. Vintage lamps are combined with contemporary seating upholstered in luxurious velvets and dining tables have unique hand painted glass tops in the style of Italian marbled end papers.
The First Floor Bar, with its large floor to ceiling windows overlooking Curzon Street, features original and quite magnificent Rococo panelling and mouldings, hidden for generations and now fully restored. Cosy and clubby with quirky contemporary touches, this Bar is a welcome addition to a part of town heavily endowed with formal hotel bars but lacking casual, informal, comfortable drinking establishments. Light food is served here throughout the day.
There is a Private Room seating 24, for intimate seated lunches and dinners, as well as cocktails and meetings.
Address 54 Curzon Street
London W1J 8PG
Telephone 020 7629 2742
Email info@tempomayfair.co.uk
