The charming maître d’ (and Urbanologie member) Paulo de Tarso left his role at Bar Boulud at London’s Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park to open his own restaurant with fellow restaurateur (and friend) Nicolas Jaouën.

Privately backed, De Tarso and Jaouën, former general manager of Mayfair’s La Petite Maison, have opened Margot, an Italian restaurant in the West End. The concept for the restaurant, which celebrates the glamour and rustic charm of Italian design and craft, focuses on “great food and great service, and simple elegance - combining comfort and a refined but lively setting". 

The restaurant, which is open seven days a week, seats approximately 100 diners, and serves traditional Italian food, celebrating the country’s extensive regions accompanied by a list of both New and Old World wines. They have appointed Maurizio Morelli as Head Chef, who hails from Latina, near Rome, was most recently chef-patron at Latium restaurant in Fitzrovia and behind Briciole Ristorante Gastronomia in Marylebone, a modern Italian trattoria with a delicatessen. Open 10 October. 

Ideal For

A taste of Italy

Signature Dishes

Tagliolini with crab meat and purple aubergine and risotto “alla Milanese” with saffron and roast bone marrow as part of a menu that spans expertly sourced cured meats, carpaccio and tartare dishes, salads, pasta options and a range of meat and fish main courses.