RAYMOND Blanc’s Cheshire double whammy will take place on Monday June 27 when he simultaneously launches the Brasserie Blanc in Knutsford and The Oakwood in Alderley Edge. This reinvention of two former Loch Fyne sites by his team will be the French Big Cheese's first return to the North West since his Petit Blanc site in Manchester closed in 2010.
Brasserie Blanc French bar and restaurant will open on Regent Street in Knutsford in the historic Royal George building. Part of a group overseen by legendary chef Blanc, it promises to bring affordable French food to the town seven days a week from 9am-10pm, Mon-Thurs; 9am-10.30pm on Fri-Sat and from 9am-9pm on Sundays.
Dishes on the summer menu include: cheese soufflé, chilli and ginger squid, potted Cromer crab, grilled cod ‘au citron’ and a range of Cornish free-range steaks. Summer berry Savarin and chocolate and almond torte are among the desserts.
Raymond Blanc said: “I am very excited to be opening in this beautiful town with so much history. I hope very much that people will enjoy what we have to offer here – the food is simple and honest..
Eight miles away The Oakwood will launch, marrying trad pub and French brasserie on Brook Lane, Alderley Edge. It’s part of the White Brasserie group, whose existing 10 pubs, all in the South, are run by a sister company to Brasserie Blanc.
Although Raymond is not directly involved, he takes a great interest in their progress. His main hands-on focus remains his 2 Michelin star Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Oxfordshire.
The pub will be open 11am-11pm Mon-Sat and 12pm-pm on Sundays. Expect classic French dishes – moules, boeuf Bourguignon, lemon tart alongside English pub classics gammon, duck egg and chips or a seasonal pie of the week. Steaks are from pasture-reared English cattle.
The pub oozes country chic with vine covered pergola outside and inside a huge weathered zinc top bar and “a Farrow & Ball palette of soft greens, dusky pinks and blues”. Sounds perfect for Alderley then.
Brasserie Blanc, Royal George Buildings, Regent Street, Knutsford, Cheshire, WA16 6GR, [email protected]
The Oakwood, Brook Lane, Alderley Edge, Cheshire, SK9 7RU, [email protected]