This summer will see Mark Hix open his second
Hixter restaurant, bringing his chicken and steak concept to Bankside. The celebrity chef and serial restaurateur talks to Square Meal about what to expect and what’s next.
This is already your second Hixter. Are you planning a bigger chain of them?
We do want to grow the brand and expand the chicken and steak concept and we're always looking for sites that offer something unique, be it the building itself or the neighbourhood.
Why Bankside?
The area has really changed in recent years and continues to evolve in a very exciting way; a few years ago it would not have been a consideration for us but the opportunity presented itself and we
couldn't say no.
Will the menu be identical to that of the City restaurant?
We always start with chicken and steak, that's our concept but each site has variations on that. Devonshire Square has a surf and turf section and a curry as it’s in the Old Indian Warehouse
company. For Bankside, our chicken farmer is looking into rearing a new breed of chicken for us.
And what about the look of the space?
Like Hixter in the City, the design of the site will be sympathetic to the building itself. Things unravel every day and you uncover small gems that belong to the building’s character which makes
each site unique. We're building a vast open kitchen, and concrete floors were on the agenda but then we discovered the beautiful original floorboards which add such warmth. In terms of art, there
will be a pretty large piece from artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster that will make people look up. We like to make people look up (and I don't mean it’s hanging from the ceiling).
Plus there’s another Mark’s Bar down below?
Yes, a big one. It will be a great bar and events space with a 2am licence. We are already looking into having a resident DJ night every week.
What else do you have in the pipeline for 2014?
We are also close to conclusion on another site that would open in early 2015 if successful, but we are focusing very much on the opening of Hixter in Bankside for now.
And finally… which would you choose: chicken or steak?
Both, they’re to share and that’s the beauty.
Published on 7 April