David Carter’s influence on London’s restaurant landscape shows no sign of waning. Following the success of his Shoreditch venues SMOKESTAK and Manteca, Carter has raised the bar again with OMA and AGORA, two interlinked restaurants in Borough Market that reflect both a deep respect for Greek culinary culture and an impressive understanding of what today’s diners want.
His latest project is not just ambitious in terms of square footage - it spans the somewhat awkward two-storey site on Bedale Street that was once home to Hotel Chocolat’s Rabot - it’s also Carter’s most sophisticated conceptually.
OMA, an upstairs crudo and fire-focused restaurant with a sprawling terrace overlooking the capital’s most famous food market and a 450-bin wine list, secured a Michelin star within its first year. Its sister restaurant AGORA, downstairs, channels the energy of an Athenian street market, offering charcoal-grilled meats and mezze-style dishes at an accessible price point.
What distinguishes Carter is not just a flair for restaurant concepts, but a builder’s eye for space and a marketer’s instinct for trends all underpinned by an operator’s grasp of the business fundamentals. Every element of the Borough Market project - from the ingenious way it opens out onto the street to the strategic hiring of top chefs Jorge Paredes and Eyal Schwartz - demonstrates his progressive approach to the creation and running of high quality-yet-accessible restaurants.
Carter has become a zeitgeist restaurateur who not only seems to know instinctively what Londoners want but has the capability to deliver it at a very impressive level.
His latest project is not just ambitious in terms of square footage - it spans the somewhat awkward two-storey site on Bedale Street that was once home to Hotel Chocolat’s Rabot - it’s also Carter’s most sophisticated conceptually.
OMA, an upstairs crudo and fire-focused restaurant with a sprawling terrace overlooking the capital’s most famous food market and a 450-bin wine list, secured a Michelin star within its first year. Its sister restaurant AGORA, downstairs, channels the energy of an Athenian street market, offering charcoal-grilled meats and mezze-style dishes at an accessible price point.
What distinguishes Carter is not just a flair for restaurant concepts, but a builder’s eye for space and a marketer’s instinct for trends all underpinned by an operator’s grasp of the business fundamentals. Every element of the Borough Market project - from the ingenious way it opens out onto the street to the strategic hiring of top chefs Jorge Paredes and Eyal Schwartz - demonstrates his progressive approach to the creation and running of high quality-yet-accessible restaurants.
Carter has become a zeitgeist restaurateur who not only seems to know instinctively what Londoners want but has the capability to deliver it at a very impressive level.
