Myrtle Restaurant, Chelsea

If you’re one to consider Irish fare all meat stew with a side of Guinness and oysters, then it’s high time to think again. Chef Anna Haugh is here to show you the refined side of the Emerald Isle, with a glorious menu that champions the very finest Irish produce. You’ll be able to enjoy the likes of Ballymakenny potatoes and beef from the Burren (‘the best beef in the world’ according to Anna). Of course, such a premium assortment of delicacies is deserving of a postcode to match, and so Chelsea is where Myrtle will make its home.

This modern European restaurant will bring a taste of Chef Haugh’s Irish heritage to the plate, with twists on classics and a focus on the best homegrown ingredients. Clonakilty black pudding rolls with Wendy’s apple chutney, and beef with boxty cake, hispy cabbage and parsnip puree, all showcase her flair for taking traditional, quality produce and introducing her well-honed cooking techniques. Look out for Irish classics like Dublin Coddle given the most refined makeover you’re likely to have seen.

Anna, a Dublin native, is no stranger to impressive and exacting kitchens – she’s taken the helm as Executive Chef at Bob Bob Ricard, and has worked for Philip Howard, Shane Osborne and Gordon Ramsay. Myrtle will be her first solo project, and is named after Myrtle Allen – the original head chef at Ireland's famous Ballymaloe house. Anna has previously called Myrtle her idol, and a ‘spectacular woman’, so it’s fitting that such an important milestone in her culinary career should be named after the matriarch of modern Irish cuisine. With no secret investor, this will be Anna’s baby through and through, right down to the interior design and choice of font on the menu.

Other dishes lighting up the list with an inventive and exciting assortment of ingredients are the slow confit Goatsbridge trout with cauliflower and capers, and Tonka bean creme brulee with rockscotti. Guests will be able to toast to Ireland with the house cocktail, which will include Myrtle berries infused in the traditional Irish beverage, poitín. Although taking its provenance seriously, there’s still a fun side to the menu (cinnamon doughnuts alongside buttermilk Panna Cotta with rhubarb jelly, for example), and we’re sure Myrtle will be serving up great craic alongside the splendid cuisine.

Myrtle restaurant is due to open in April 2019