Chinawhite comes home (Venues)
Since its venue closure last year members club Chinawhite has had time to reflect and relocate.
Sat Bal gleaned the new vision from Chinawhite co-founder and MD Jeremy Hartley at Wednesday night's relaunch party. (27 Oct '09)
Where?
The club now resides at a grade II listed building on Winsley Street, Fitzrovia. The area is the historic home of artistic and literary figures such as George Bernard Shaw who frequented the infamous Fitzroy Tavern.
Ethos
Is Chinawhite courting a latter-day Bloomsbury set? That 1920 collection of creatives saw writers such as Virginia Woolf and E.M. Forster shoot the breeze with economist John Maynard Keynes and other financial engineers. Similarly the club's new ethos seeks to envelope "a melting pot of creatives and independent thinkers."
Certainly its location fits the bill; the nearby UFO Club was home to Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix played at Speakeasy
and Bob Dylan debuted at the King and Queen pub.
Natalie Imbruglia at the party
"Our
thinking behind this club is, what is relevant now? As we rise from
economic uncertainty, do people really want to leave their houses at
10pm and go to clubs that are nothing more than celebrity platforms?"
said MD Jeremy Hartley. "We believe that is an outdated concept. When
you walk through our doors, you are taken care of in a very bespoke and
service led way – a space to eat beautiful food, a space to dance and
most importantly a space to spend time with friends. This is relevant
now.’
Interior
The
oriental influence persists although at a lower key than the previous
Air Street club. The ground floor restaurant features a ceiling of
abstract clouds, Chinese hand-painted wallpaper, Balinese carved
friezes and paintings by Hong Kong artist Nigel Szeto famed for his contemporary pieces that re-work traditional art forms.
The Temple bar features interchanging wall lights and luxurious Missoni cushions while the main room houses the dance floor and main bar.
A
warm, varied hardwood floor links the spaces and the space is
surrounded by walls that echo old and new China – a Cole and Son
wallpapered oriental landscape sits comfortably alongside a glass bar
featuring a traditional poem celebrating life.
The poem was penned
by a Hong Kong based calligrapher and then realised digitally and
projected onto the back of a 30ft glass panel. Elsewhere a gold leaf
wall casts its own charm.
The VIP room is accessed via a bespoke cast brass door and leads into a cocooned space with low level seated booths surrounded by intricate carved wooden frames.
The restaurant
serves a modern twist on classic Asian dishes such as Kung Pao chicken,
sashimi tuna, blackened halibut, griddled watermelon and toasted
ricotta salad as well as grilled foie gras with langoustine. The menu
has been designed by chef Adam Penney whose 14 years in cuisine include the award-winning Horseshoe in Hampstead, Bibendum and The Lonsdale in Notting Hill.
Chinawhite has also enlisted the hospitality talents of of Fatima Yashira, Ibiza’s most highly regarded VIP host.
Chelsy Davy
Noel Gallagher and Sara McDonald
Venue vitals
Open : Tuesday through Saturday.
Restaurant from 7pm. Club from 10pm.
Architect: Tibbatts Kirk Abel
Interior Design: Satmoko Ball
Other guests
RK _________________________________________