The team behind Italian steakhouse experience Macellaio RC have revealed they would like to open more restaurants in London, regionally and internationally.
Founder Roberto Costa said he was also toying with new concepts and was keen to open a Piedmontese pizzeria Bravo, which would be more scalable than the restaurant business and targeted at airports and railways stations.
The group opened its third branch in the Union Yard Arches a month ago, following sites in South Kensington and Exmouth Market, and introduced two new concepts – a theatrical in-house butchery and a Ligurian bakery.
Costa and finance director and partner Mohammed Asif said any new restaurants would have their own style – and that they were convinced no other operator was doing anything similar.
Asif said: “We will remain a steakhouse though each restaurant will have something different. We will probably do two more in London - we’d never want to have 20 here - but London is big enough for five over all.
“Providing the conditional we will then think about places like Manchester and Bristol.
“And internationally we want to open in New York, Hong Kong and Dubai. We’ve looked at these areas and there’s no-one at the level we operate or with our philosophy.”
Asif, who also owns a restaurant consultancy which advises Angela Hartnett, said turnover at the group was up 10% over the last year, with overall profits up 8.5% year on year.
The Bravo pizzeria concept, which is still in development, would have a simple of menu of just three options, and draw on the Ligurian artisan style of the Union Street bakery.
Costa said: “I’ve got some other ideas in my pocket.
“There’s thousands of Italian restaurants in the UK and they always talk about how their recipes come from their mama. I could say the same thing but I like to do something different.
“I like to tell customers about the history of the food. I like a simple, pure product, not too many ingredients.”
The latest addition to the group in Union Street draws on the area’s artistic nature and develops a concept around ‘butchery theatre’.
Prized beef is dry-aged behind glass and then carved up on a white marble block in the dining areas as part of a performance for guests.
The beef is fassona, a cattle breed which originates from Pakistan and migrated to Piedmont thousands of years ago, which is high in muscle growth and low in fat and cholesterol, with a tender texture and buttery taste.
As well as steaks, the menu features carpaccios, tartares, and cured meats.
Macellaio RC Union Street is also the first restaurant from Genoa-born Costa to feature his take on a Ligurian bakery or “Pizzeria secondo me”, with 48-hour proved sourdough.
The bakery serves a range of traditional Ligurian breads, vegetable tarts, fresh pasta and pastries, including Torta di Bietole e prescinseau (swiss chard and curd tart) and Focaccia al formaggio di Recco.
Menus also feature pissalandrea - a unique west-Ligurian bread made from a thick dough baked in a pot, similar to pizza and focaccia
