Monday Bulletin: Cometa | Loulou Groupe | Padella

Catch up on the latest industry news stories of the week from the CODE Bulletin

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LOULOU GROUPE

A decade after it launched in Paris, French hospitality group Loulou Groupe is set to launch its first British property in autumn 2026: 16 Charles Street, a ‘social and dining club’ in a Grade II*-listed Georgian townhouse in Mayfair. Conceived as a London ‘pied à terre’ for Les Amis, Loulou Groupe’s international community of members, 16 Charles Street will have five floors of salons, bars and restaurants, including a French brasserie on the ground floor which will be open to the public. Founded in 2016 by siblings Gilles and Claire Malafosse, Loulou Groupe has created some of Paris and the Riviera’s most exclusive addresses, from Loulou Paris at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs to Loulou Courchevel, opened last winter, and Loulou Pirate in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Its most recent offering, Le Grand Café at Le Grand Palais in Paris, has earned rapturous praise — seducing even the most hard-to-impress Parisians. Loulou Groupe’s announcement reinforces London’s status as the destination of choice for major French players. La Nouvelle Garde, Bagatelle Group, Big Mamma, and Tiger Milk are just some of the French hospitality groups with a stake in the capital.

PADELLA

Tim Siadatan and Jordan Frieda are bringing their fresh pasta concept Padella to Soho, a decade after it opened in Borough. The Kingly Street site, their third site after Shoreditch, will have 80 covers across two floors and a PDR for eight.

COMETA

Carousel co-founders Ed and Ollie Templeton are launching Cometa, a Mexican seafood restaurant, in February next year. It will replace their Charlotte Street wine bar and specialise in quality seafood from top UK suppliers.

ARDENT PUB GROUP

JKS Pubs (one of CODE’s Happiest Places To Work) has been fully acquired through a private investment round led by founder and MD Dominic Jacobs, under a new name, Ardent Pub Group. It is eyeing growth, with eight openings targeted in the next three to five years.

• Now open in Margate Old Town: The Wellington, a pub and dining room from chef Billy Stock and Ellie Topham. On the menu: beef cheek and snail suet pudding.
  
  
• Angelina Adamo of Tutto Apposto is opening her debut restaurant. Vieni, a Sicilian neighbourhood restaurant, will open in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter in early 2026.
  
  
• Song Que, a Kingsland Road institution since 2002, is opening a second site. Song Que Pho Bar will open at the old Pearly Queen site “sooner than you think”.
  
  
• Shake Shack is heading up north: it debuts at the Trafford Centre in Manchester in March 2026.
  
  
• Urban Leisure Group (Coin Laundry etc) has chosen Brent Cross Town, the new net-zero development in North West London, for its tenth location. Coming spring 2026.
  
  
• Entries are now open for Fortnum & Mason’s Food and Drink Awards 2026, judged this year by a panel led by Angela Hartnett. Applications close 28 January.  
  
  
• Model Market returns to Lewisham Shopping Centre in spring 2026 and is looking for street food traders, chefs, and indie operators. Register here before 1 March.
  
  
  

WHAT WE’RE READING

The ultimate guide to Edinburgh’s speciality food shops: The Good Food Guide

“Prince Harry used to help butcher venison”: Clare Smyth on feeding the A-list and her royal regulars: The Telegraph

I called my recipe book Sabzi – vegetables. But the name was trademarked. And my legal ordeal began: The Guardian

David Ellis reviews Bonheur: Gordon Ramsay’s top dog conquers Le Gavroche: The Standard

THE DUMBWAITER

Talent, charm, good looks…as if Kol’s Santiago Lastra didn’t already have it all, he’s now been added to Tom Cruise’s famous Christmas list. Lastra shared a picture of his gift – a white chocolate coconut bundt cake from Doan’s Bakery in LA – on Instagram this week.

The Bull, Charlbury made a spectacular setting for the Knife and Fork Media Christmas bash, with a magnificent feast of silky chicken liver parfait and turkey and ham pie served in the safari tent at the back of the pub. If it’s good enough for David Beckham’s knighthood celebration…

To The Cinnamon Club for the inaugural FT Weekend Business Lunch Awards hosted by the paper’s restaurant critic Jay Rayner. Guests included Jeremy King, Nieves Barragán Mohacho, Tomos Parry and Jeremy Lee.

Spotted: Peep Show’s David Mitchell at Fischer’s in Marylebone.