Harrods to launch two Asian restaurants in April

London department store Harrods will open two new Asian restaurants this spring in collaboration with restaurateur Eddie Lim and Gilgamesh chef Ian Pengelley.

Housed in the Knightsbridge store's famous food hall, South East Asian restaurant Pan Chai and Thai eatery Mango Tree will open in the first week of April.

The 22-seat Pan Chai will offer a range of South East Asian cuisines, including Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Malaysian, with a focus on sushi, sashimi and salads, Meanwhile the 24-seat Mango Tree will be the sister site to Mango Tree in Belgravia and feature a similar menu of authentic Thai dishes and flavours.

The launches come hot on the heels of an announcement last month that the Michelin-starred Galvin brothers and Irish chef Richard Corrigan will also open restaurants at Harrods. Galvin Demoiselle and Corrigan's Bentley's will open in March and May respectively.

The new Asian restaurants will be designed by Stoneforce mixing contemporary elements with Harrods' existing style.

Lim will be responsible for both restaurants, while executive chef Pengelley will be in charge of the menus and general manager Chai Phisit Jirakanjanakun will oversee the front of house operation.

Pan Chai's signature dishes will include Harrods' special sushi rolls made with crabmeat, tobiko, cucumber, topped with Japanese mayonnaise, salmon and spring onions as well as a seaweed salad with collagen, peanut and miso.

The menu at Mango Tree at Harrods will offer freshly prepared dim sum such as foie gras and chicken gyoza, Chilean sea bass roll with sake and black bean, duck and cucumber spring rolls with hoi sin sauce and purple taro and chicken croquettes.

Commenting on the restaurant launches Lim said: "It's always exciting to open a new restaurant, but it is a privilege to have both Pan Chai and Mango Tree in Harrods, one of the world's most iconic stores. We're really looking forward to welcoming customers to all that Southeast Asia has to offer and providing them with quality cuisine."

Paul Goodale, director of restaurants at Harrods, added: "We believe the exceptional dishes and warm hospitality offered by Pan Chai and Mango Tree at Harrods make them the perfect addition to our portfolio of 28 restaurants. At Harrods we are always seeking to exceed our shoppers' expectations with an array of gourmet dining experiences and are sure they'll be thrilled with these latest additions."

Harrods teams up with Galvin brothers and Richard Corrigan to launch two new restaurants >>

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By Andy Morton

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