Planners back bid to preserve Julie’s, restaurant choice of the A-listers

 
p40 Mandatory Credit: Photo by Alex Lentati / Evening Standard / Rex Features (2089103a) Julie's Restaurant In Holland Park West London The First Restaurant In The Country To Be Fined For Making False Organic Meat Claims. Restaurant Managing Director Johnny Eckerperigan Admitted Three Charges Offences Under The Food Safety Act But Denied That The Fraud Was Intentional. He Was Fined A7 500 And Warned He Could Face Jail If Caught Again. Julie's Restaurant In Holland Park West London The First Restaurant In The Country To Be Fined For Making False Organic Meat Claims. Restaurant Managing Director Johnny Eckerperigan Admitted Three Charges Offences Under The Food Safety Act But Denie
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Ruth Bloomfield14 March 2013

A row has erupted over the future of one of London’s best loved and most celebrity-friendly restaurants.

Kensington and Chelsea council has stepped in to protect Julie’s in Notting Hill after the owner unveiled plans to demolish part of the restaurant to build a three-bedroom mews house.

Entrepreneur Tim Herring and his wife Cathy, who helped co-found the charming rabbit warren of a restaurant and wine bar in 1969, hoped to demolish the kitchen, pantries and some of the dining space. Mr Herring claims the restaurant could continue operating with a new kitchen in the basement, although this would mean the loss of more dining space.

However, council officers feared the smaller restaurant would simply not be viable. “The applicant has failed to demonstrate that the resulting facilities would retain a sufficient quality and scale of restaurant space to ensure there would not be a loss of valued high-quality facility space,” explained a report on the application by Jonathan Bore, the council’s planning chief.

“If the use were subsequently lost there would be a negative impact on… the needs of the community and to the character of the conservation area.”

Some 24 local residents objected to the project, claiming the new house would “ultimately result in the loss of the entire restaurant” and overlook their properties.

Julie’s has served generations of A-list celebrities. Raquel Welch, Princess Margaret, the Rolling Stones, Sean Connery and Sir Paul McCartney were all early patrons.

Diana, Princess of Wales dined there regularly, since it was only a short trip from her home in Kensington Palace. More recently the members of Oasis, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Stella McCartney, and Nicole Kidman have all passed through the doors to enjoy Julie’s mix of modern and traditional British food.

Harden’s restaurant guide calls it a “seductive, eclectically decorated labyrinth” and “one of London’s longest-established party restaurants” — but the guide winced at the prices, including £21 for a traditional Sunday roast of beef, Yorkshire pudding and veg.

Julie’s — named after interior designer Julie Hodgess, who conceived both the restaurant and bar — was constructed on the site of a builder’s yard. It is credited with turning Notting Hill from a run-down area seething with racial tensions into one of London’s most fashionable and expensive suburbs.

Mr Herring said: “We want Julie’s to continue for another 40 years at least. We have no intention of closing it.” He blamed an “unfortunately worded” planning application for giving the impression that the new house would impact dramatically on the dining room, and said he plans to reapply.

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