Brasserie Bar Co, the operator of Brasserie Blanc, is set to relaunch Chez Gerard at the brand’s remaining site in London’s Bishopsgate, with a return to the brand’s steak-focused roots, M&C Report understands.
The group, which is led by Mark Derry, has invested just under £500k on refurbishing the site, which will have a more New York-style steakhouse feel and incorporate a lunchtime-focused ‘steak express’ dining area on its ground floor that will become a bar in the evening and a more premium steak restaurant on the first floor.
The new site will launch on 10 December and the group is looking at the possibility of opening further restaurants under the brand, initially in London.
Brasserie Bar Co. acquired the eight-strong Chez Gerard chain and the brand name last November in a deal valued at c£9m. It has since invested £4m in transforming the other seven sites into Brasserie Blancs.
John Lederer, managing director of Brasserie Bar Co., told M&C Report that the group hopes the rebirth of Chez Gerard will take the brand back to how it felt and was viewed when it was first launched in London’s Charlotte Street in the 1970s when it claimed to offer ‘the best steak-frites this side of Paris’.
He said: “The feedback we have received from a number of people when it comes to the brand is ‘such a shame it used to be so good’. People did enjoy the brand but over the years it had lost the simplicity of its offer. We have stripped it back, especially in the ‘steak express’ offer to steak, chips and salad’, its good food without trying to be too clever.”
The steak express offer will have a price point of £19.95 for sirloin steak, chips and a salad, while the upstairs restaurant will be more a la carte aimed at a £30-£35 price mark. The restaurant will also include an “outstanding” wine offer.
The evening bar will diverse range of offer and with the bars found in 1950s’ London hotels an inspiration.
Lederer said: “The bar scene in the capital is very polarised, we want to go the other way where a group can come in an order, for example, London Pride, a Martini and a cocktail.”
