Alan Bird to open Smithfield restaurant in spring 2013

Former head chef at the Ivy, Alan Bird, is to open his new restaurant Bird of Smithfield in spring this year.

Bird spent 15 years heading the kitchen at the Ivy and was group executive chef at the International Soho House Group.

The restaurant’s menu will be "British with a twist" with dishes aiming to explore the influence British food has had both historically and presently.
 
It will be open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with a dining room featuing Harris Tweed and herringbone fabrics, a bar, a basement cocktail bar, a private dining room with a chef's table and a roof terrace over-looking the towers of the old market.

The basement bar, known as the Birdcage; will also host live music on selected nights. London-based bar consultancy Fluid Movement will oversee the cocktail menu.