Bistro Freddie to open in Shoreditch

Bistro Freddie – a new restaurant from the Crispin Group – is set to launch in Shoreditch on 30 September. 

Dominic Hamdy, founder of Crispin in Spitalfields and Bar Crispin in Soho, will head up the group's latest opening. Located between Shoreditch high street and Old Street stations, the restaurant will take on the space previously occupied by the Turkish restaurant Oklava. 

The 45-cover site will have a classic bistro feel. It will offer 33 seats for banquette and table dining, plus a further 12 at the kitchen counter, with some outdoor seating available in the summer months. 

The menu will be overseen by head chef Anna Søgaard, who joins the group from Manchester restaurant Erst, having trained in several kitchens in Copenhagen in her home country of Denmark. Guests can expect such dishes as pork cracking and pickled walnut ketchup; egg mayonnaise with anchovy and fried capers; grilled cabbage and mushroom stuffing gravy; Dorset snail flatbread with beef fat, garlic and parsley butter; fried skate wing with peas and curry sauce; and milk ice cream with brown ale caramel. 

Ahead of the launch, Hamdy comments: "This project has been a long time coming and I'm thrilled to bring it to fruition. We trust we've done this site justice with an optimistic design and a knockout team to match it. 

"Anna is an exciting chef who brings an ambitious dedication to our menu at Bistro Freddie. My dad, Freddie – of whom the restaurant is named – taught me about generous hospitality, to have a warm plate and a glass of something for anyone who walked through our door. I want to emulate this generosity at Bistro Freddie, through a deeply delicious menu and outstanding wine list, where you are greeted with the warmest welcome in an impressive yet familiar space. This is a project close to my heart."

You may also be interested in…