Patisserie Valerie chain grows to 11 outlets in central London

Patisserie Valerie has opened its 11th café in central London and has a 12th site earmarked for 2006.

This is the group's second new site this year, following an earlier opening in Piccadilly. The new business is housed within a Norman Foster-designed building in Spitalfields.

The three-floor site includes a pâtisserie, a 60-seat café, a take-away ciabatta bar and a gelateria. It also has a 70-seat brasserie, which will open in January.

The first Patisserie Valerie opened in Soho's Old Compton Street in 1926 and was bought by the three Scalzo brothers in 1987.

Director Enzo Scalzo believes there's room for another five venues in central London and would like to add sites in Notting Hill, Westbourne Grove, Holland Park, and a second in Kensington.

The 12th Patisserie Valerie will open before Easter next year at the Burlington Arcade in Piccadilly. It will include, for the first time, a tearoom along with the group's first wedding cake shop.

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