When English artist Damien Hirst opened his first restaurant Pharmacy, in 1998, its decor of medical cabinets and pill-shaped stools fooled many people into thinking it was an actual drugstore. Now, 13 years after the Notting Hill eatery closed, Hirst has opened Pharmacy 2 in Vauxhall.
But Pharmacy 2 isn’t the only venue in which London’s famous creative energy shines. At these restaurants, fabulous food is matched by an equally impressive aesthetic.
Inside Damien Hirst’s Newport Street museum, his second restaurant once again resembles an apothecary. Here, chef Mark Hix’s food mixes with the BritArt star’s unique work: dazzling butterfly wing pieces, medical cabinets and windows depicting DNA.
Take a look at the interiors of the restaurant in this video.
Sake No Hana’s haute Japanese menu is complemented by an exquisite interior by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, where bamboo and cypress ooze serene beauty.
Award-winning contemporary Peruvian food meets rough-luxe style in Coya with its elegant antique furniture, modern Latino art and industrial flourishes.
Architect Zaha Hadid’s dreamy pale dining space at The Magazine restaurant in the Serpentine Sackler Gallery features a flowing futuristic roof, curvy columns and glass walls that draw in the surrounding gardens.
Dishoom (“pow!” in Bollywood film speak) offers four fine Indian restaurants – we like the one in Shoreditch best – oozing 1930s Bombay charm: ceiling fans, period furniture and vintage art.
Inside an 18th century townhouse, Sketch serves bold Michelin-starred food in surreal artist-curated rooms, where fairytale forests meet futuristic bathrooms.
Sharing plates add to the relaxed vibe in a secretive Soho basement where groovy 1960s design meets 21st century pizzazz in Old Tom & English.
Written by Norman Miller for Silverkris