Today, The Brush Grand Café – a restaurant, lounge and cocktail bar situated on the ground floor of the new art’otel London Hoxton – opens its doors.
The space is naturally lit from floor-to-ceiling windows and takes inspiration from the timeless, laid-back Grand Cafes of Vienna and Paris in a contemporary setting, with large-scale artwork from the hotel’s signature artist, D* Face, adorning the walls. The Brush, which takes its name from a huge bronze paint brush sculpture outside the entrance, is a creative hub for locals and visitors alike, welcoming guests from the bustling surrounds of Old Street.
The 70-cover restaurant welcomes guests to the curved, glass-walled dining-room, from breakfast through to coffee and cake and onto a relaxed dinner with cocktails. The Brush’s menu celebrates the breadth of classic European cuisine, championing the best loved flavour profiles from across the continent. At the heart of the restaurant is The Counter, which houses a daily selection of cakes and pastries, alongside the flatbread oven from which signatures including Gruyère, bacon and caramelised onion and ‘Nduja, mozzarella and basil are served.
Executive Chef Ryan Matheson’s all-day menu is reminiscent of Europe’s iconic cafés with simple yet refined cooking at the heart. Much-loved classics such as Croque Monsieur sit alongside starters of Beef tartare, prawn cocktail and French onion soup. Larger mains include:
From the Josper Grill guests can enjoy Whole roast chicken with garlic & red onion jus and Roast hispi cabbage with pickled shallots, almonds and oat jalapeno mayo. Decadent desserts include a traditional Vanilla crème brûlée; and Choux buns with mango and basil alongside Layered chocolate cake, Éclaires and Madeleines from the patisserie.
Upstairs, on the first floor, The Brush Lounge & Cocktail Bar provides a space for guests to settle in for cocktails, snacks and live music by night. Group Bars manager Alessandro Mannello has created an elegant drinks menu, with cocktails designed to reflect the bar’s atmospheric surrounding including the 50 Shades of Champagne a short sip cocktail which mixes vodka, Cointreau and Champagne and topped with Champagne air; and a refreshing Lee-LAY – rosé reduction, peach, Lillet, apricot & white grape soda. A signature cocktail at The Brush is Les Fleurs du Mal, a French twist on a negroni where yellow Chartreuse replaces Campari and is mixed with Noilly Prat and absinthe, served from an Absinthe Fountain over a sugar cube. In a nod to 19th century Parisian cafés, the absinthe fountain will be brought to guests on an absinthe trolley and served table-side for a theatrical dining experience. To complement the cocktails is a concise menu of bar snacks from Matheson.
The Brush holds works from art’otel Hoxton’s signature artist Dean Stockton, a British Street artist from London’s East End, better known as DFace, who has worked in collaboration with Eyal Shoan of award-winning interior design studio Digital Space. DFace has created striking 40-metre murals which run along the length of both floors of The Brush. Floor to ceiling windows overlooking Old Street are in keeping with the restaurant’s contemporary design and flood the room with natural light. Outside, a large 70-cover terrace (due to open later in 2024), will create an oasis in the heart of London.
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