The Social Company will open the doors to Temple & Sons, a new City grill restaurant and bar, on 21st November.
Situated adjacent to the iconic Tower 42, Temple & Sons is a second partnership for Jason Atherton with Restaurant Associates. With a more casual approach, it is set to contrast the high-rise fine dining at neighbouring sister restaurant, City Social.
The venue will be set across two floors, each offering a different dining experience: an 80 cover grill restaurant and a 40 cover all-day deli and bar serving snacks and small plates, championing British produce throughout. Executive Chef, Paul Walsh, who also heads up City Social, will oversee the kitchen, working closely with Jason to create the restaurant’s more relaxed but equally innovative menu.
The name Temple & Sons is a nod to the history of Tower 42; Palmerston House was previously built on the site, named after British statesmen Henry John Temple, Third Viscount Palmerston, who was twice Prime Minister in the mid-nineteenth century.
On the ground floor deli and bar, the menu and interiors will be inspired by a traditional British grocery store, complete with artisan tins of canned goods including smoked sardines in tomato, alongside a range of British cured meats from Cannon & Cannon and snacks such as game sausage roll, creamy mash and HP gravy.
At night the deli will transform into a cocktail bar, with carbonated cocktails canned on site, including Can Can (strawberry and black pepper jam, Reyka vodka, Aperol and prosecco) and Temple’s Tipple (Jameson’s Irish whiskey, stout, chocolate bitters and coffee).
Cocktails served in card milk cartons and sardine cans will again take inspiration from traditional British provisions, such as Gentleman’s Relish (Bloody Mary with a bespoke Portobello Road gin distillate with Gentleman’s Relish and Worcestershire sauce) and Golden Lyle (Lyle’s golden syrup, yellow chartreuse, Monkey Shoulder, cacao). Also available for the first time at Temple & Sons will be The Social Company’s own signature bottled lager.
Upstairs, the restaurant kitchen will operate entirely from custom-built grills using varying types of wood, charcoal and hay. Continuing the theme of British heritage, dishes are designed for family-style dining, with grilled fish, meat and poultry served whole or in large cuts, with a selection of sides to share.
Comforting and nostalgic but with the group’s characteristic focus on innovation and flavour, dishes will include wood-fired pork chop, collar and crackling with sage & pine nut crumb and whole grilled Newlyn line-caught turbot with pickled Cornish cockle and pork vinaigrette. For dessert, the menu plays on Britain’s great repertoire of puddings with the likes of vanilla rice pudding with homemade jams.
Overseen by Russell Sage Studio, the interiors have been designed to evoke a Victorian grocery, with stacked timber shelves brimming with a variety of goods. A palette of rich, caramel tones with flashes of orange and teal will create a warm and inviting space, with timber panelling embellished with antique brogue detailing and brass ironmongery. Feature lighting includes Victorian angle-poise lamps and a custom-made feature light suspended over the staircase between the two floors.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Jason and his team again,” comments James Boyle, MD of Restaurant Associates. “The work we have done together at City Social has been outstanding and we hope to mirror some of this success at Temple & Sons. There is an appetite for a more casual style of dining in the City of London, and we are thrilled to be part of its growing food scene.”
Commenting on the launch of Temple & Sons, Jason notes, “Temple & Sons is my tribute to our great British produce and dining traditions. Following the success of our partnership with Restaurant Associates on City Social, I’m very happy to be working with them again.”
