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Inside Bright: The Follow-Up From Restaurant of the Year, P. Franco

The hotly anticipated new site opens on Westgate Street, near London Fields, tomorrow

by Adam Coghlan
Photography by Andrew Leitch
Andrew Leitch/Eater London

Tomorrow, the owners of P. Franco — the wine shop, bar and Eater London’s restaurant of the year — will open their eagerly awaited, fully fledged restaurant on the site, which until February was occupied by the Michelin-starred Ellory, a neighbourhood location at the base of the multi-use Netil House, in the heart of hipsterville, near London Fields in Hackney.

The restaurant is called Bright and is principally owned by P. Franco and Noble Fine Liquor (wine shop on Broadway Market) co-founder Liam Kelleher; run by partner, general manager (and architect of P. Franco’s move from wine shop to serious kitchen) Phil Bracey; while the kitchen is being led by two chefs: Will Gleave (ex-Garagistes, Tasmania) and Pepe Belvedere (ex-Brawn). Running the floor is restaurant manager, Lulu Tindal, who has moved to Bright from Lyle’s in Shoreditch.

It will come as no surprise that the wine list is a showcase of natural, low-intervention styles from small scale producers across Europe and the New World. This restaurant belongs very much to the new-school: the food is a contemporary mix of classic Italian cuisine (including Belvedere’s fresh pasta) and Gleave’s modern European inclination, an idiosyncratic style of cooking which is more than a little interested in the rich seasonings and importance of umami found in Asian cuisine.

Take a look at the first photos from inside the restaurant and the opening menu.

Welcome to Bright, the new restaurant from the team behind Noble Fine Liquor, and P.Franco
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
True to its name, the interior at Bright is light-filled and airy
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Everything at Bright comes from within the family — menus were designed (as well as cloth bound and embossed, by hand) by Tegan Hendel, wife of Phil Bracey
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
The dining room is a thoughtful mix of communal and individual table settings
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
There’s room at the bar...
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
...and at these bar tables; the posters pay homage to Bright’s spiritual home, P.Franco
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Phil Bracey; the man who turned P.Franco from wine shop to celebrated “restaurant”, and the smiling face behind Bright
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
The kitchen is a joint effort between Will Gleave (L), and Giuseppe “Peppe” Belvedere; two of P.Franco’s best-loved resident chefs
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Grilled duck hearts with Gleave’s infamous X.O. sauce
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
The best London meals of 2018 include Bright restaurant in London Fields
“Razor clams, spelt and horseradish” with sea greens and a delicate clam shell broth
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Asparagus at Bright restaurant in London Fields
Asparagus, sprouting broccoli, hollandaise
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Cod, pesto cetarese, and crispy sea purslane
Andrew Leitch/Eater London
Bright restaurant by the team behind P. Franco and Peg in Hackney is one of the best restaurants in London, spring 2019
The team behind Bright have applied a light touch to the former Ellory space, creating a restaurant that captures the same buzzy, communal atmosphere of P.Franco, but with clear intent
Andrew Leitch/Eater London

Broadway Market

Broadway Market, , England E8 4QJ
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Bright

1 Westgate Street, , England E8 3RL 020 3095 9407 Visit Website
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Brawn

49 Columbia Road, , England E2 7RG 020 7729 5692 Visit Website
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P Franco

107 Lower Clapton Road, , England E5 0NP Visit Website