Shaftesbury has announced the first two restaurants to sign as part of Central Cross, a 48,000 sq ft mixed-use development at the eastern gateway to Chinatown London.
Sichuanese restaurant, JinLi, and casual noodle and dumpling concept, Modern Shanghai, will open new restaurants at the scheme this winter.
JinLi will open its second restaurant in the area, taking a 4,300 sq ft unit with space for 150 covers, serving a menu of modern Sichuan dishes. The menu will include traditional dishes such as Sliced Pork and Sizzling Rice Crust, and Yuxiang Shredded Pork, as well as new dishes such as JinLi Fragrant Rabbit. To ensure a fresh offer, the chef from Chengdu will return to Sichuan every six months to develop new dishes and recipes.
The new Chinatown London restaurant is due to open this winter, with a special Sichuan opera performance.
Joining JinLi Chinatown is casual noodle and dumpling concept, Modern Shanghai, which will open a 4,000 sq ft restaurant. The menu will include the brands signature Shanghai Dumpling (Xiao Long Bao), as well as roast duck noodles, wun tun noodles and a selection of grilled Chinese tapas.
Julia Wilkinson, head of group restaurant strategy at Shaftesbury, said: “We are thrilled to announce two key restaurant signings, an exciting milestone in the evolution of Chinatown London. JinLi Chinatown and Modern Shanghai are both creative new concepts from existing Chinatown operators that perfectly reflect our strategy to introduce new flavours to Chinatown London, offering the very best Chinese and East Asian cuisine in the capital.”
Yi Fei, the owner of JinLi Chinatown added: “2018 has been a significant year for our brand’s expansion and we are proud to be a part of the brand new Central Cross development. This Chinatown London location will offer innovative and exclusive new dishes, with the aim of playing a big role in redefining London’s Sichuanese culinary landscape. With its reputation as London’s leading destination for East Asian cuisine, we couldn’t think of a better place to launch our second London restaurant and to offer such dishes. We look forward to delivering a refined and modernised Sichuanese dining experience, without losing the essence that has been enjoyed by generations after generations.”
