Fairy tales start with “Once upon a time”. However, this is also the ending of many success stories. Like the one at Copenhagen’s star restaurant Noma. “To continue to be Noma, we need to change,” says the homepage of the world-famous fine dining temple. Noma as we know it will no longer exist starting in 2025. The model of upscale gastronomy has become unsustainable, both in human and ecological terms, as well as economically, owner and chef René Redzepi told the New York Times. Instead, the 46-year-old wants to rethink the industry completely. Therefore, he is transforming the fine-dining restaurant into a food laboratory where new food innovations and flavors will be developed in the future.
Image: Premier Inn
Schnitzel and burgers instead of star cuisine?
Is this the end of Michelin-starred cuisine? How can other restaurants hope to survive the many crises if one of the best restaurants in the world fails? In an interview with the German magazine Stern, German star chef Tim Raue gives the all-clear. “Of course, it is up to Mr. Redzepi to decide what to do. But he definitely does not have the right to sanction the entire global industry in return.” According to Raue, “there are enough restaurateurs who run a properly managed business and pay their employees fairly.”
The latter in particular was apparently not always the case at Noma. This is in contrast to Tim Raue’s restaurants, where he says he has always followed the rules when it comes to pay. In 2025, he will even open another restaurant in a unique location. We will see if his restaurant can be included in the list of the most loneliest restaurants after its opening.
Yes, there’s a lot going on in the gastronomy scene. While some iconic chefs are seeking change, others are expanding their empires and presenting new and exciting concepts. But before we dedicate ourselves to the promising restaurant openings, let’s take a final look at legendary venues that we now have to bid farewell.
The most famous restaurant closures in 2024
Le Gavroche, London
The closure came as a surprise to many, as Le Gavroche was fully booked week after week for almost six decades. It was one of the last bastions of classic French haute cuisine in London. The decision to close the restaurant, was based on a desire for a better work-life balance, as owner Michel Roux Jr. announced.
This is undoubtedly the end of an era. When Roux’s father Albert and his brother Michel opened Le Gavroche in 1967, they had no less a goal than to open the best French restaurant in England. Indeed, in the early 80s, they managed to write history as the first restaurant in the UK with three Michelin stars. The list of chefs who once stood at the stove at Le Gavroche is very impressive. Stars such as Marco Pierre White, Gordon Ramsey, Monica Galetti and Konstantin Filippou have been chefs here.
Although the London institution has now closed, Michel Roux Jr. seems to have no intention of giving up the cooking spoon any time soon. His name pops up time and time again in connection with gastronomic events. For example, the two-starred chef will be providing culinary support for several trips to Norway on the cruise ships Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth in 2025 under the name “Le Gavroche at Sea”.
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Tetsuya’s Restaurant, Sydney
“What the hell is going on?” is a long-standing question in the Australian gastronomy scene. After all, 15 percent of business closures in Australia are in the hospitality industry. This is usually due to the effects of the pandemic in combination with the current economic challenges.
Tetsuya’s in Sydney, once named the best restaurant in the Asia Pacific region, also appears on the long list of closings. Originally, they only wanted to move the gourmet restaurant to a new location, “but sometimes things just don’t go according to plan,” as owner Tetsuya Wakuda announced. Instead, he made the difficult decision to permanently close his restaurant after 37 years.
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Lucky Kwong, Sydney
This year, Australian chef and TV star Kylie Kwong also quit the restaurant business after 24 years with the words, “Big news. Everything changes …” With her first restaurant, Billy Kwong, she revolutionized Australian cuisine by combining traditional Chinese recipes with local ingredients. However, when the premises closed in 2019, this did not mark the end of her career. It was rather a new beginning. Just two years later, she opened Lucky Kwong. This restaurant has shorter opening hours to give her team and herself a better work-life balance. Lucky Kwong was named after her son, who was stillborn. The new restaurant helped her cope with her grief.
Now she is entering a new chapter and wants to focus on sharing and promoting the stories of others, especially those of the “First Nations and our multicultural community, which make Australia the rich and diverse country it is today.”
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Restaurant Openings of the Year
Sphere by Tim Raue, Berlin
It is probably the height of his career and one of the most exciting new openings of the year: From spring 2025, star chef Tim Raue will take over the culinary management of the Sphere Bar, which is housed in the 368-meter-high Berlin TV tower. And this despite his fear of heights.
Nevertheless, the joy of being able to delight guests with sandwich rolls, Currywurst or Königsberger Klopse in Berlin’s tallest landmark outweighs this. “It will be a contemporary culinary concept that shows Berlin and Brandenburg in a casual setting,” says the two-star chef. He considers it very important to work with producers from Berlin and Brandenburg – ideally the wines should also come from Germany. Incidentally, the food won’t be cooked in the restaurant itself, which is located 207 meters above Alexanderplatz and rotates completely twice an hour. This is prohibited by the Berlin fire protection regulations. Instead, the food will be prepared at the base of the television tower. Delivery at lofty heights included.
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Super Peach, LA
David Chang first caused a stir with his reinterpretation of the traditional Japanese soup Ramen. This is because he cooked it the way he preferred, not the way it has always been done. The idea took off. In 2006, Chang opened Momofuku Noodle Barin New York, a city full of fine dining concepts, where he served authentic dishes at affordable prices in an unpretentious atmosphere. Since then, the exceptional talent has opened a good two dozen more restaurants, although some have since closed.
“There are only two reasons to open a new restaurant,” Momofuku CEO Marguerite Zabar Mariscal told the New York Times. “One is a really great concept. The other, much rarer reason is to have a talent like Paul, around whom you can build something.” She’s referring here to Barbados-born chef Paul Carmichael, who previously ran Momofuku Seiębo in Australia and has now returned to New York to take over a new Momokuko restaurant. Not much is known about it yet, except that the cuisine should have a Caribbean touch.
We know a little bit more about Super Peach, which is due to open in spring 2025 in the Westfield Century City shopping center in LA. The plan is to have a 200-person restaurant with a similar vibe to Momofuku’s Noodle Bar in New York’s East Village and a little more casual than Chang’s Majordomo. Incidentally, the name is a continuation of Momofuku, a Japanese name that translates as “lucky peach”. Another fun fact: the inventor of instant noodles was named Ando Momofuku.
Image: Gabriele Stabile
Gordon Ramsay times five, London
British star chef Gordon Ramsay seems to have already achieved everything. He manages restaurants all over the world. He earned 17 Michelin stars during his career and he was even knighted by the queen. But with his next project, he even tops himself. “A dream come true,” the cooking icon announced euphorically on Instagram.
After all, five restaurant openings are planned for 2025 in London’s tallest office building. 22 Bishopsgate reaches 278 meters into the sky, with 200,000 square meters of floor space spread across 62 floors. At the top, on level 60, will be Lucky Cat by Gordon Ramsay – the highest restaurant in the UK. It will serve Asian dishes, from dumplings and bao buns to deep-fried tempura and sushi, the breathtaking view included. On the roof top terrace of the Lucky Cat, guests can party on until the wee hours of the morning. One floor lower, the Bread Street Kitchen & Bar by Gordon Ramsay will serve the star chef’s most popular dishes and cocktails, as well as a new and special afternoon tea experience.
