Harrods Is Going for Broke in Bid to Become a London Restaurant Destination

A fine dining figurehead will open a flagship restaurant in London, at world-renowned luxury department store Harrods? Björn Frantzén, best-known for this eponymous three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Stockholm, will open another in Knightsbridge this November, becoming the crown jewel in the retailer’s fast-growing collection of famous chefs.

The restaurant, which unlike his Swedish home is not a tasting menu operation, is self-described as “displaying a Nordic or Asian twist,” the two cultural culinary cornerstones that have dominated global fine dining in the last 50 years. So there’s tartare — both tuna and deer — with caviar and kombu; sashimi with fish from Denmark anointed with truffles; and a duo of Swedish and Japanese beef that takes the general vibe as literally as possible.

There is so much ambition on show that Harrods, for the first time in its history, is adding a rooftop terrace to its building that stretches along Brompton Road, bolstering capacity and drama for the 112-seat restaurant.

Jason Atherton, Tom Kerridge, Vineet Bhatia, Mireille Hayek, and Gordon Ramsay have all opened premises — some counters, some full rooms — at the Knightsbridge address, creating a kind of culinary theme park for shoppers. Frantzén’s arrival appears intended to be its crowning glory, and the Michelin man will certainly be rolling through.