James Street in Marylebone Is Turning Into a Serious Restaurant Destination

Caprice Holdings — the restaurant group behind The Ivy, Sexy Fish and Scott’s — continue their ceaseless expansion across London with the news today that they have acquired the La Tasca site on James Street in Marylebone.

A holding announcement issued to Eater London read: “As of August 2017, Caprice Holdings has entered the licensing process for a space in Marylebone; 30-34 James Street, London, W1U 1EU, to open a new restaurant.”

Though official details are scarce, sources have told Eater London that Caprice Holdings are looking to open another Harry’s Bar site on the street. This comes just 10 days after the group acquired the Cafe Rouge site in Knightsbridge on which they are planning to open a restaurant version of the members’ club, reportedly called Harry’s Dolci. It also comes in the same week that the group confirmed their acquisition of the Grain Store site in King’s Cross.

The planners and developers for James Street, which connects Oxford Street and Wigmore Street, seem intent on redesigning the part-pedestrianised strip as a more grown-up restaurant destination. Adding to one of London’s favourite burger restaurants, Patty & Bun, Jason Atherton’s Social Wine & Tapas opened in 2015. There’s sushi bar and takeaway Atariya, too and early this year, Bone Daddies ramen shop opened their seventh site on the street. But news that Hoppers have moved on the area for their second site, followed by Alan Yau’s Yamabahçe pide concept announcement, and now Caprice, two things can be deduced: there’s not enough room, and rent hikes are off-putting, in Soho — and that this particular, renascent stretch of Marylebone is becoming a serious destination in its own right.