Current and ex-staff claim demise of London restaurant can be traced back to the departure of chef’s right-hand man
Dinner by Heston was once one of the world’s most revered restaurants, known for its decadent and unusual dishes such as the “meat fruit”.
But Heston Blumenthal announced this week that he is winding down operations at the two Michelin-star restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge, London, saying it was because the tenancy had “finished”.
However, current and former workers at Dinner claim the restaurant has been going downhill for years after Blumenthal fell out with his right-hand man, Ashley Palmer-Watts, who created the menu and ran the restaurant day to day before he left the business.
“Closing the restaurant was not Heston’s choice whatsoever,” a senior source from the Mandarin Oriental told the Guardian. “The hotel chose not to renew the lease.
