2020 is upon us, and news from the hotel and restaurant industry is pouring in. In an interesting update, a new restaurant formed by former Disney executive James Bulmer is about to open its debut venue in London this year. Bulmer, who was also CEO of the Fat Duck Group, will work with the former executive chef of three Michelin starred Alinea to open the first restaurant in London.
The group goes by the name ‘Wonderland Restaurants’ and comprises of a core team full of restaurant and industry specialists. The team includes Claudio Cardoso, who was the former group executive chef at Sushisamba, Mike Bagale, who was a former executive chef at Alinea in Chicago and Mark Garston, the innovation director. Garston was the former head of central development for the Fat Duck Group. Chris Cox, a mental magician, and a ‘mind-reader’ (self-proclaimed) is also part of the stellar team.
The team behind Wonderland has worked in some of the most creative restaurants across the globe and aims to achieve an international portfolio focused on immersive food concepts. The Wonderland Group is already in talks with award-winning global brands for discussing a number of restaurant products and concepts. The idea behind the communication is to devise a strong idea for immersive food concepts. The first of their restaurants is set to open by the end of this year in London.
“Wonderland Restaurants is a rich melting pot of some of the finest creative minds and storytellers from the world of food and magic,” said Bulmer.
“Our company’s vision is to bring curiosity, imagination, and wonderment to the hospitality sector in a way never seen before and build an international portfolio of immersive food concepts. I’m incredibly excited to be steering this hugely dynamic team of talented individuals, with an exciting project planned for this year,” Bulmer further added while speaking to the press.
The Wonderland Group has also enhanced their portfolio through the launch of Wonderland Labs. The Labs are meant to assist the team in the creation of innovative food and drink options. The Labs would assist the testing of innovative and immersive food and drink options and would help accelerate the process.
Bagale joined Alinea in 2009, to become the first executive chef within their premises in 2012. Bagale left Chicago in 2018, only after changing the fortunes of his restaurant over. During his time at the restaurant, they made an appearance every year in the list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
The Wonderland Group is all set to explore their plans for an immersive food experience, starting from London by the end of this year. With a team as talented as theirs, we can surely expect some good results.
