IT’S a bit like a new Pope taking the Farrow and Ball to the Sistine Chapel, but Grafene are putting their own stamp on the premises they inherited (with a seven year gap for tumbleweed to blow) from Raymond Blanc.
The new owners, who open the first restaurant named after a revolutionary material on Friday, July 22, have erased the last trace of the French chef from the former Brasserie Blanc on King Street/Chapel Walks. Viz; the 15ft long eye-catching mural painted outside its private dining room.
It was loosely based on the Last Supper and featured the likes of Richard Branson, Marilyn Monroe, JFK and Madonna alongside the messianic and disarmingly boyish Blanc himself around a dinner table. Now Grafene owners Paul and Kathryn Roden have had the mural painted over as part of their clean modern makeover and they’ve even issued an erasure video (no, not the band). Here’s a still from it.
Paul said: “Raymond Blanc is a true icon in the restaurant and hospitality world, and we hold him in the highest respect. However, we don’t think the mural was up to the same high standards as his cuisine.
“We have our own modern style and so it was clear that the mural had to go. We will be unveiling some contemporary and eye-catching art of our own when we open next week.”
The 190-seat Grafene will provide “a cocktail and champagne bar and restaurant, with Modern British fine dining in an informal atmosphere”. Here’s our preview.
Grafene, 55 King Street, Manchester, M2 4LQ. @grafeneMCR