Black & Blue opens Chelsea branch

London restaurant group Black & Blue has opened its seventh site, Picasso, on the King’s Road in Chelsea. The all-day bar and restaurant prides itself on serving “simple, unpretentious food with maximum flavour”, with steaks and burgers a particular speciality.

In an effort to appeal to Chelsea’s "ladies who lunch", Picasso’s speciality is the steak paillard, a lighter option than the rest of its selection, which covers côte de boeuf, fillet, rump, ribeye and T-bone.

With stiff competition between London’s growing number of steak restaurants, Black & Blue buys all its meat from Jeffries Too of Kingston. The butcher’s specialist UK suppliers dry age their steaks for a minimum of 28 days.

As an alternative to puddings such as apple and almond tart, Picasso offers diners a cheese board paired with a glass of 10-year-old Port.

Breakfast is a major focus for Picasso, which offers classics from eggs Benedict to smoked salmon with scrambled eggs.

The restaurant is also positioning itself as a starting point for those heading out to Chelsea’s night clubs. The bar serves up a number of cocktails, from the classic Bellini to the more inventive Romeo’s First, a mix of El Jimador reposado Tequila, Galliano, Passoa, passion fruit purée, lime juice, cranberry and Champagne.

Click here for the drinks business’ review of Black & Blue’s Mortimer Street restaurant.

Gabriel Savage, 31.05.2011