Pantechnicon, a brand new dining destination and concept store exploring two cultures under one roof, launches September 22nd in London.
JAPAN + NORDICS
Five floors: UK’s first Café Kitsuné, roof garden bar + terrace, Nordic bar + restaurant, Japanese cocktail lounge + restaurant, immersive Japanese bar + bottle shop, pop-up gallery, takeaway kiosk.
Two dedicated concept retail spaces, a seasonal programme of evolving collaborations, workshops, exhibitions + tastings, new + renowned talent, including visiting craftspeople, chefs + bartenders.
Opening 22nd September 2020 in London, Pantechnicon is a celebration of contemporary creativity and craftsmanship that explores Japanese and Nordic cultures through food, drink, retail and design.
The new community hub on pedestrianised Motcomb Street, Belgravia, is at the heart of the Grosvenor Estate and a five-minute walk from Knightsbridge. Behind the original London heritage exterior is a raw warehouse interior.
Barry Hirst, co-founder of Pantechnicon and Open House:
“Everyone has an appetite for exploration, adventure and new experiences. We are a group of people who share a passion for travel, culture and hospitality. Together our mission is to have fun creating a platform for new creative talent from Japan and the Nordics and to share our discoveries with everyone, all in one place. Both cultures have a lot in common from their relationship with nature to their passion for simplicity and functionality in design.”
New Dining Destinations
On entering the building, guests are welcomed into Café Kitsuné (meaning ‘fox’ in Japanese), the first permanent outlet to open in the UK from creative duo, Masaya Kuroki and Gildas Loaëc. Serving breakfast and lunch, the menu will feature Japanese inspired pastries and lunch dishes; caramel miso rice pudding brioche, melon pan, sandos and Japanese salads in addition to expert blend coffee.
Overlooking Café Kitsuné and is an intimate but open gallery space hosting Sachi (meaning ‘happiness’ and ‘fortune’ in Japanese), a 30-seat pop-up dining spot for lunch and dinner featuring comforting Japanese dishes including seven-spice chicken, agedashi dofu and cold prevention soup. The gallery pop-up is a preview of the mainstay 100 seat Sachi restaurant, bar, cocktail lounge and street terrace on the lower ground floor, opening in Spring 2021.
Sakaya isan immersive bar and boutique bottle shop tucked away on the east side of Halkin Arcade with a selection of handcrafted Japanese barware, spirits and wines featuring whisky, umeshu and sake selected by Sake Samurai, Natsuki Kikuya. The space will also play host to tastings of rare and precious bottles and blends. Both Sachi and Sakaya will open on 5th September.
On the second floor, inspired by travels across the Nordics, is Eldr (meaning ‘fire’ in Old Norse), a 70-seat restaurant with seasonal menu showcasing Nordic cooking methods and traditions; pickling, foraging and cooking with fire. Menus have been designed to celebrate Nordic techniques with a sensitivity to British ingredients to bring something new to the London scene. The robust yet sleek space holds the industrial feel of the rest of the building, offset with a state-of-the-art open kitchen, complete with counter dining, for diners to take in the theatre of the Nordic chefs.
On the third (top floor) is the 130-seat Roof Garden at Pantechnicon, a bar and dining roof garden for all seasons with a fully retractable electric glass roof and all-day small plate and snack menu from the kitchen at Eldr with main dishes for lunch and dinner. The garden is designed by Finnish horticulturalist and garden designer, Taina Suonio and boasts some of the best roof space in the area with an expansive south-facing terrace.
The Nordic kitchen team is led by internationally trained Finnish Head Chef Joni Ketonen. The Nordic cocktail menu will change seasonally, curated by bartenders-in-residence from award winning bars and restaurants from across the Nordics; kicking off with Icelandic mixologist Siggi Sigurdsson, a winner at the 2019 Bartenders Choice Awards.
New Concept Stores
The Edit on the ground floor showcases a curation of 150 Japanese and Nordic brands including handcrafted gifts and products, from designer tech and ceramics to outdoor equipment, footwear and fashion accessories. The Studio on the first floor brings together a wider range, including a selection of beauty products from Bijo, whose mission is to introduce Europe to the Japanese wellbeing lifestyle. The first floor is a large experiential space where guests will be introduced to emerging brands, artists, creators and makers through workshops as well as retail and dining pop-ups. First brands announced for The Edit and The Studio include tokyobikes in collaboration with Pantechnicon; accessories from cult Danish label Aesther Ekme; fragrances from Swedish perfumer 19-69; Japanese homewares from Kaikado; bags from Porter Yoshida and jewellery from Shihara. Further exclusives to Pantechnicon include Katriina Nuutinen (design pieces) and Antipast (accessories), Suicoke (footwear) and Tom Wood (jewellery) and Dane Erik Schedin’s minimally designed sneakers.
A 21st Century Concept
Pantechnicon was built in 1830 as an art and crafts centre (Pantechnicon derives from the Greek words Pan ‘all’ and Techne ‘craft and art’) before being turned into an upmarket warehouse for local residents to store finds from their travels around the world. It was then that the building’s horse and carriages used to transport furniture were given the name Pantechnicon. And so Pantechnicon entered the English dictionary, and the eponymous removal lorries still exist. With respect for its heritage, today Pantechnicon has been sensitively repurposed to meet the needs of the 21st Century.
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