Launceston Place

When a local dining establishment is endorsed by some of the most popular people on the planet, it may find itself elevated from 'restaurant' to the status of 'institution'. Take Launceston Place - in the Eighties, its warren of intimate dining rooms hosted anybody who was anybody, and famously enjoyed the regular patronage of the late Princess Diana.

The difficulty with being an institution, however - as any ageing star might tell you - is that over time, living up to the legend can be wearying. Fading celebrities might call in a toyboy to boost confidence and reintroduce vim and vigour into the old routine - but can the same formula work for a restaurant?

To call Tristan Welch, the head chef of the re-launched Launceston Place, a toy is entirely unfair. His former job as head chef at Petrus could hardly be considered child's play, and for three years he habitually sparkled in the kitchen as brightly as the restaurant's two Michelin stars.

But did I mention his age? "I'm terribly young!" he jokes, "Shockingly young! I'm 29 - 30 this year." While his youth and energy were instrumental in transforming Launceston Place into its fresh incarnation, he has a keen interest in preserving its position as a beloved amenity. His motivation is not purely financial; as a local resident (he lives in Notting Hill with his wife, a City broker who's expecting identical twins this summer), he is enamoured with the building, the area and those who inhabit it.

"Pre-war it was a tea room called the Copper Kettle, and then it expanded and became an Italian restaurant, and then it went on to Launceston Place," he says of the intimate 60-seater place. "It was a real institution - it was like The Ivy. And ever since then it got tired. So we literally gutted it, started again, put fresh life into it. It's really nice to be a part of that institution with the local clientele. There are real characters around here. There's an elderly lady we still do meals on wheels for. She's 91 years old. She's had meals on wheels for years - we just inherited her and carried on! Beautiful! I never imagined coming from a two Michelin star restaurant I'd be doing meals on wheels, but it's a lovely thing to be part of the community."

The menu offers quintessential British classics, but Tristan employs innovations that are a hallmark of the younger generation. "What we tend to do is keep very classical combinations - all the experimentation is in the technique downstairs in the kitchen. We kind of leave it there, so we don't overwhelm our customers with Marmite and snail sandwiches and wacky stuff like that." His kitchen is a dazzling trove of technology and gadgetry - but he insists it's not just for show. "We're using technology to aid us in giving a better product."

His pre-dessert - a baked egg custard with hazelnut and caramel crumble - exemplifies this approach that embraces experimentation, gadgetry and technology behind the scenes, while respecting tradition and the diner's palate in the finished result. The custard comes in real eggshells in silver eggcups, delivered on an antique egg service that wouldn't have looked out of place in the Copper Kettle days. "The first one I found was on Portobello Road. I thought it would be brilliant. I had this gadget that would cut the top off eggs very smoothly and we just played with it from there. I couldn't find any more on Portobello Road that weren't extortionate, so I got the rest on Ebay!" The youth of today, eh? Long may they reign.l

Tristan Welch competes to represent the South East in the Great British Menu on BBC2 which starts on 30 March

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