The long awaited restaurant from Gabriel Pryce and Missy Flynn will be opening in the heart of Soho, on Lexington Street, with reservations for the restaurant open now.
On Tuesday 19th October, Gabriel Pryce and Missy Flynn will be opening the long awaited follow up to the much loved East London restaurant, Rita’s, 10 years after the original pop-up in Dalston, with a new home and concept in the heart of Soho. Symbolising the next step for the duo, Rita’s will present a restaurant led by the pair's long standing passion for hospitality, with a food and drink offering guided by quality and their combined experience and interest into dining culture across the globe.
True to their other projects, the menu at Rita’s will be heavily inspired by nostalgic, personal experiences, as well as Missy and Gabriel’s travels across the Americas and the food, nuance, and culture found there. The menu will include; Jalapeño popper gildas, their signature hot bean devilled eggs; barbecued beef tartare with garlic, raw vegetables and lots of herbs, salt cod taquitos; a vegan ‘cacio e pepe’; larger dishes include grilled sugar pit pork collar, whole fish a la plancha and steak dinner for two served with all the trimmings rounding off the menu, making room for desserts including a house-made key lime pie.
I want to offer a full on, all points covered classic steak dinner for two. Beautiful sirloins and rib eyes, with all the trimmings. Starters, sides and dessert all included and all done unlike anywhere else. And that’s it, you just relax and don’t have to look at the menu again. It’s for people that really want to spend time with each other’ says Gabe.
The menu will be heavily influenced by provenance, seasonality, and what is available to them from their suppliers. Missy and Gabe have formed a strong relationship with suppliers, including Max Onslow of Bateman Road in Chingford, who has converted a neglected field by old allotments and will be collaborating with Missy and Gabe to grow specialty ingredients for the restaurant. Meat and fish will be sourced from around the UK, including pork and beef from Farmer Tom Jones who will be delivering whole animals to the team butcher in-house, with prime cuts going to the restaurant and smaller cuts going into carnitas and sandwiches at the Bodega Rita’s.
Gabe says; ‘The vegetables we will be using will be informed by what’s coming out of the ground from Max at the time so it may be tomatoes or courgettes or tomatillos that work their way into these dishes. In terms of meat, one of our favourite cuts is the “coppa” from inside the shoulder of the pig. We take it out and cure it whole in unrefined pure cane sugar and coconut aminos. It has a fantastic pork taste reminiscent of sugar pit barbecue and hints of char siu’.
At Rita’s, Missy has created a drinks programme that once again reflects the myriad experience of the team. The wine list will focus on low intervention wines made by producers who champion terroir & sustainable farming from predominantly old world territories and has been created collaboratively with Missy’s brother Cameron Flynn, who joins the team as Wine Manager. Cameron and Missy have aimed to create a list that complements all of the different moments one experiences within a restaurant, whether it be a drawn-out summer dinner in the garden, a late-night steak frites by candle light or a quick round of oysters on the terrace. Bright & refreshing, the wine list will provide an opportunity to enjoy some of the biggest names in the natural wine world in the heart of Soho, sourced from suppliers including Dynamic Wines, Ancestral Wines, and Modal Wines.
Created by Missy, Rita’s cocktail programme will once more draw reference from Mexico and North America. The intensely-researched list will explore the heritage behind classic cocktails, bringing new and old expressions to the London cocktail scene. These will include the Fresh Start, Rita’s new signature Margarita, made with sansho pepper infused Tapatio tequila.
Influences from the Americas will continue throughout the interior design, which showcases the duo's combined love of Old Americana, and influence from south of the border. Designed by Missy and Gabriel, Rita’s will feature a stunning enclosed rear garden with stone tiling, which will lend itself to al fresco dining all year round, lush with green and pink plants. Inside, window seating will allow guests to observe Soho’s bustling Lexington Street, whilst some higher tables allow for a more casual dining experience. Further into the restaurant there will be booths reminiscent of classic American diners, topped in the evenings with crisp white table cloths. Situated at the restaurant's centre, there will be a dazzling bar, offset with rustic Mexican tiles. The restaurant's finishings will make use of the existing wood and brick work, utilising the bones of the Grade 2 listed building.
Missy says
‘I’ve had a lot of time and opportunity to think about the kind of restaurant I want to be a part of. I’ve always considered Rita’s to be a place of genuine admiration and learning for the cultures and culinary practices we explore. Since I’m not a chef, my inspiration comes mostly from the social spaces in communities that have food and drink at their centre, and thats what I really hope Rita’s is and can become for those who have not yet experienced it.’
Rita’s will open Tuesday 19th October, reservations can be made here.
49 Lexington St, Carnaby, London W1F 9AP.