We’re trying something new with Table for Two this week: one longer weekly newsletter instead of two shorter ones, so you get everything to savour in a single sitting.
This week: reflections on “Where Are the Women Restaurateurs?”, five stories in food & dining culture to dig into over dinner this weekend, the restaurant of the week as well as the openings that should be on your radar for autumn.
Drop me an email reply or a comment telling me what you think of the new format.
Where are the women restaurateurs?
Three restaurateurs on what it actually takes to open a restaurant, and my reflections on what their stories tell us about female ownership.
One of the best parts about starting this Substack has been engaging with so many inspiring creators on the platform, and this week I had the opportunity to meet one of those creators in person. Pani is the writer behind The Goal Is To Eat, and her newsletter is one I’m always excited to see land in my inbox. This week she hosted a Monday evening panel at Toklas Restaurant, with an inspiring group of restaurateurs, the topic: Where Are The Women Restaurateurs?
The panel included three women who’ve opened brick and mortars in food & beverage: Cynthia Shanmugalingam who owns the buzzy Borough Market Sri Lankan spot Rambutan; Anna Higham owner and pastry chef behind the Islington neighbourhood bakery Quince; and Boutheina Ben Salem owner of Tunisian coffee house OULA.
The conversation was candid, touching on topics I haven’t heard discussed publicly like how much does it cost to open a restaurant, how to finance an opening, and how to pick the right location for your spot?
Whilst the panel was not asked directly where are the women restaurateurs, having honest conversations that de-stigmatise some of the barriers to entry for minority groups, is the first step in answering its own question.
The theme that defined the night across each panelist is that none of these three women received capital through institutional channels like banks or VCs. They got in through personal networks, friends who'd invest, ten years of industry goodwill, and a chance conversation at a dinner.
What emerged across all three: hospitality capital still runs informally, and informal capital runs on who you already know. This is the barrier that filters out people without pre-existing access, disproportionately women and minorities.
It's worth asking whether this is a gender story specifically, or whether 'call in every favour you've ever earned' is just how independent restaurants get built full stop, regardless of who's asking. Plenty of male owned openings run on the same informal capital. But if the network everyone draws on skews toward people who already look like the industry's existing owners, the mechanism doesn't have to be discriminatory to produce a discriminatory result.
If the door in is a personal network, the fix could be making informal capital less informal through published investor lists, funds earmarked for women and minority led openings, formal routes that don't depend on ten years of goodwill or a lucky seat at the right dinner.
In the meantime, if you’d like to support more female owned restaurants, there are a few resources available. Pani published this resource: Women Owned Hospitality Index, which maps female-owned restaurants, bakeries, cafés, and pubs across London. Sally Abé, restaurateur behind Teal and Kayla Lawrie, Top Jaw producer, have also built a map, with female owned UK restaurants in London and beyond.
After dinner conversations
From the serious, to the light-hearted, a round-up of dining and culture news to dig into around the table this weekend.
01. London Museum is re-opening with food & beverage as core programming
London Museum has announced its reopening in a new home at Smithfield this November. The museum closed in December 2022 and will reopen in the historic General Market building in November 2026. The building has been empty for more than thirty years and renovations for the new museum began a decade ago. The launch includes four hospitality concepts: an all-day bistro, a bar with a London-inspired drinks programme, a café open 24 hours Thursday to Sunday, and a rotating residency space for up and coming food talent. Earlier this year the V&A East opened with Jikoni on site. At £437 million in restoration costs, F&B isn't an afterthought here, it's doing some of the work of justifying the spend as museums start to monetise the visit beyond the exhibition ticket.
London Museum opens on November 28th.
Learn more about their F&B program here
02. Smoke taint concerns in Bordeaux
It's been frightening to watch the wildfires raging across the South of France, and my heart goes out to everyone affected. Separately, and on a much smaller scale, the fires are also threatening this year's Bordeaux harvest through smoke taint, where smoke particles cling to grape skins and alter the wine's flavour, degrading quality, especially in red varieties. This will likely result in an uneven 2026 Bordeux vintage where the estate (and its proximity to the fires) will matter a lot.
The news this week reminded me of an article I read last year in Saveur on how the climate crisis will reshape, and in some cases eliminate, our favourite foods, linked here. A fascinating and terrifying read.
Read full article on smoke taint concerns in Bordeaux here
03. Marco Pierre White Makes a Lasagna for BBC Maestro
On a much lighter note, I'd love to know who's running Marco Pierre White's Instagram, because it's full of self-deprecating posts like this one. There are two versions of MPW living in my head: the Harvey's 1990s era screamer who kicked out customers for asking for salt... and then there's the fully self aware chef we get today. We’ve seen Gordon Ramsay use TikTok similarly, the same men who built reputations on kitchen tyranny are now being repackaged as nostalgia and self-parody.
Anyway, this MPW collab post actually made me laugh out loud.
04. The Wolseley’s Founder Thinks You’re Doing Dates Wrong
A restaurateur has the best vantage point on some of the most interesting moments of a life: first dates, proposals, break-ups. I really enjoyed this piece by Alfred Tong who interviewed Jeremy King, founder of J Sheekey, Le Caprice, The Ivy, and The Wolseley. King shares his dating advice from the perspective of someone with four decades of observing from his restaurants.
“Some of the worst problems I’ve ever had in restaurants were with people wearing suits and ties….”
Read the full article by Alfred Tong here
05. Dominic Sessa only read Kitchen Confidential after he was cast as Anthony Bourdain
Bourdain die-hards are up in arms over the Tony trailer. Dominic Sessa was on Vogue’s The Run-Through this week talking about playing a young Bourdain, and admitted he knew almost nothing about him going in, only picking up Kitchen Confidential after landing the role.
The Bourdain purists are calling it sacrilege. I’d argue it’s the opposite. A super fan brings baggage…. reverence, imitation, and would perform a romanticised version of Bourdain (read: cringe). A trained actor with no prior attachment can build the role from research instead.
Link to the interview can be found here. Interview starts 16 minutes in.
Restaurant of the week
A weekly review of one restaurant I’ve eaten at recently and would recommend.
Luca, Clerkenwell
There are few better places to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon in London than tucked away on a terrace, and Luca might just have one of my favourite terraces in the city. The space is in the back of the restaurant so it’s far away from any main roads which means it’s tranquil and feels like you’re escaping London for the afternoon.
Earning a Michelin-star in 2023, Luca is famous for serving what it describes as “Britalian” cuisine, a modern style of Italian food that views traditional Italian recipes through a seasonal British lens. For example, instead of using cheese from Bologna, you’ll find an artisanal variety from Bedfordshire instead.
Menu highlights: Roast orkney scallops with jerusalem artichoke and ‘nduja; Parmesan fries; Tortelloni of Italian courgettes, ricotta, datterini tomatoes, basil and hot honey
Address: 88 St John Street, Clerkenwell, London, EC1M 4EH
To have on your radar…
What's next in restaurant and dining culture and worth keeping an eye on.
Over the past week and a half we've had a few exciting announcements in restaurant openings and culture. These are the ones to have on your radar:
Restaurants:
Waterhouse - The Water House Project is reopening simply as Waterhouse, in a new Victorian warehouse space on Ezra Street, near Columbia Road. Opening 6 August 2026.
Endo - Endo Kazutoshi is opening a 10-seat omakase restaurant in the former Five Fields site in Chelsea, with a listening bar upstairs. Opening October 2026.
Culture:
The Rise of the Rockstar Chef - A 3 part BBC documentary featuring Gordon Ramsay, Marco Pierre White and Heston Blumenthal. Premiering late 2026
Tony - The A24 biopic of Anthony Bourdain. Coming to UK cinema 14th August, 2026.
Table for Two lives at the intersection of food and culture, not simply recommendations, but a considered point of view on why dining matters, and where to find the best of London’s table culture. If this piece resonated, please support us by subscribing.
Another great read! Thanks!
That luca tortellini looks delish and wow cant wait for waterhouse part 2!