Bob Bob Cité to relaunch with new head chef
Former senior sous chef from Galvin at Windows is appointed as head chef at the new Bob Bob Cité
Bob Bob Cité is set to reopen as Bob Bob Ricard City on 26 October with a French menu from its new head chef, Ben Hobson.
The owner, Leonid Shutov, plans to make Bob Bob Ricard City similar to the Soho original which is “warmer, cosier, and richer in palate”. The interiors, reimagined by Shayne Brady at Brady Williams, will be more closely aligned to those of Bob Bob Ricard Soho, but “evoking modern-day luxury travel as opposed to the 1920s style at the Soho site”.
The new finishes will include ornate stone, polished brass, and lacquered rosewood, and three private dining rooms which will accommodate groups of nine to 18.
The new Franco-Russian ‘bistrôt deluxe’ menu will include Escargots en Persillade, Coquilles Saint-Jacques, Cassoulet with Duck Confit, Quail Grillé with Truffle Jus, Tarte Tatin, and Armagnac Doughnut, infused with the restaurant’s 70 VSOP Armagnac vintages from 1888 to 2005.
Champagne will remain an “important part of the drinks offering” with 70 options available and “press for champagne buttons” at every booth. Additionally, there will be 100 options for burgundy wines, both red and white.
Other familiar Bob Bob Ricard classics will also feature on the menu, including the Dégustation of Caviar, Oysters ‘Rasputin’, Russian Pelmeni or Vareniki dumplings, Turbot Coulibiac, and Beef Wellington for Two.
Hobson started his career at Galvin at Windows in 2010, before moving to Tom Kerridge’s The Hand and Flowers in Marlow in 2013, and then to The Star Inn at Harome, Yorkshire, in October 2014. In April 2015, Hobson returned to Galvin at Windows as senior chef de partie, before rising through the ranks to senior sous chef in 2017.
In December 2020, Hobson was appointed as head chef at Bob Bob Ricard City to redevelop the menu and lead the kitchen team.
Shutov said: “Ben has been working very hard behind the scenes throughout Bob Bob Ricard City’s closure. He brings with him tremendous passion, talent, and classic French expertise from his many years at Galvin at Windows.”
