Heading to London’s nightlife heartland, Le Bab co-founders are opening a new site in Old Street this month, a late-night kebab shop, open until 5am.
Stephen Tozer, Manu Canales and Ed Brunet are are honouring Britain's late-night kebab culture with their new venue in Shoreditch. Le Bab Old Street is set to become a major new presence in the late-night food scene, providing epic, ethical food into the small hours.
As diners step into the 20-cover restaurant, they’ll be greeted by the sight of the chefs hard at work at the custom-built doner rotisserie behind the counter. Diners can perch on bar stools to watch the leaping flames in action, or take a seat at the intimate banquette at the back of the shop and listen to a UK hip-hop-centred playlist, created by Tozer and celebrated grime artist, Big Zuu.
The menu will launch with an all-new ultimate late-night kebab special, the Pepperoni Pork Shawarma, combining their signature pork shawarma with the universally beloved flavours of pepperoni pizza: spicy soppressata, tomato pork jus, mozzarella fondue, basil & parsley.
Alongside this will sit the new Le Bab Dirty Vegan Kebab made with Beyond Meat, house pickled cucumber, sweet chilli relish, crispy fries, vegan mayo, sumac, vegan fondue sauce and cress.
Le Bab's modern classic kebabs, cooked on a wood and charcoal-filled robata, and served with freshly-made in-house flatbreads will also feature on the menu, including a meaty Lamb ‘Madras’ Adana Kebab – inspired by Indian flavours, minced on a base of madras yoghurt, Bombay mix, red onion, lime, mint and coriander.
On the side or on their own, the menu also includes favourites such as the Meat Butter Naan – reduced beef jus, British sea salt butter and garlic, spread over home-baked naan and topped with Syrian za’atar; and Turkish-Korean Fried Chicken with a date, chilli & soy glaze and garlic mayonnaise. The drinks list will be short and concise, with craft beers and G&Ts.
Le Bab Old St will embody the group's resolute focus on sustainability and social enterprise: zero plastic, zero waste, 100% compostable packaging, minimal food miles, sustainable suppliers and efficient appliances are part of every Le Bab restaurant.
Following on from their charitable lockdown initiative, the London Restaurant Cooperative, they will use the restaurant for community outreach projects for underprivileged communities in Hackney that have been damaged in the pandemic.
Tozer said, “Everyone is so so ready for the big releases in May & June. It’s going to be a special summer, with a lot of late, late nights. We’ve always wanted a night time restaurant presence; it obviously makes sense for kebabs, but also London is a little short of small hours eating out options.
'So this is genuinely a little dream come true. We can’t wait to be there for everyone, in the mix, all day, almost all night, feeding the post lockdown renaissance.”
