London & South East Premier Hospitality

Caterina 55

Premier Construction Hospitality Rail- No Photo
Written by Roma Publications

Bringing a taste of Ligurian cooking to Moorgate, brand new Italian restaurant Caterina 55 is set to take the area by storm with its mouth-watering menu and easy on the eye décor; a casual and affordable way to eat out.

Keeping up with the generation, Caterina 55 prides itself in being an all-day eatery, boasting natural ingredients in every dish, meaning customers can enjoy anything from a light lunch to a delicious dinner happy in the knowledge that their meal is free from preservatives, emulsifiers, artificial colours and flavours.

Caterina 55 believes that food should be authentic and fresh, whether or not customers are in a hurry and opting for the restaurants take-away and delivery option, or are enjoying a sit down meal of multiple courses.

Open from 7am, early risers can peruse the menu and enjoy an enticing array of pastries, muffins and pancakes, freshly baked in store using organic ingredients. Diners looking for lunch, either to go or to eat in, can tuck into freshly prepared Italian sandwiches, salads with delectable dressings including the much loved classic caprese, as well as hearty soups comprising home made stocks and seasonal vegetables. The restaurants signature dish, panissa fries, are a must try treat; made using chickpea flour, they make the perfect quick and healthy snack for Londoners on the go.

Those looking for a glass of wine and a more substantial evening meal, kick back, relax and enjoy some home made pasta dishes just like mama used to make, alternatively organic beef burgers, including a delicious pesto Genovese number.

To finish, those with a sweet tooth will adore Caterina’s desert options; a decadent tiramisu, panna cotta, or pear and chocolate cake.

The 80 cover restaurant boasts a design made up of features from around Europe, giving it a modern contemporary feel. The projects main contractors Murray and Willis worked with architects Studio Norguet Design to complete the chic renovation. Italian furniture, beautifully in fitting with the menu, is scattered beneath a French ceiling, the first of its type in the UK, and sandwiched between a mixture of ceramic tiled walls and colourfully screen printed laminate. Bespoke feature light fittings, enabling mood lighting for various events has been installed. Tabletops and kitchen worktops have come from Korea, delicately interlaced amongst the latter produce, achieving an interior look like no other.

Murray and Willis, specialists in refurbishment, have been in operation for 25 years. The company generally work within private schools, restaurants, retail outlets, banks and universities. Speaking to Premier Hospitality about Caterina 55, Allan Stevenson, Murray and Willis’ marketing director, said:

“Working on Caterina 55 was of great importance to us as a company because we’re trying to increase the amount of work we do in London; where our main office is. We’re also looking to do more work of this type, in the restaurant and hospitality areas so it was brilliant for us to work with Totton Thompson Cole, the project manager. We’ve now got future projects in the pipeline with him; it’s exciting for Murray and Willis.”

Allan added:

“We pride ourselves in building working relationships with clients, providing high quality work and our ability to offer a wide range of services in house.”

However, it wasn’t all plain sailing in the refurbishment; the restaurants prime location; a residential areain the city of London, next door to the Guildhall School of music, meant that noise had to be kept to a minimum

Speaking of the projects difficulties, Ritchie Palmer, design and build coordinator of Murray and Willis said:

“We had to keep up a good relationship with the landlord of the building; the School of Music’s orchestra pit is directly next to where we were doing building works, so we had to incorporate acoustic surroundings meeting specific requirements so as not to disturb their day to day business.”

Ritchie added:

“There are other good restaurants in the area, with menus from various parts of the world. However, Caterina 55 is a unique and exciting venture, it’s a real success.”

For more information please visit: www.caterina55.com.

Leech Group Services

Leech Group Services is a multi-disciplined company specialising in ventilation, air conditioning and electrical works. The company focuses on the hospitality and leisure sector, completing works for restaurants, hotels, pubs and clubs.

For more than 20 years Leech Group Services has been working on many prestigious projects, with clients including Pizza Express, Zizzi, ASK, Coya, CAU Restaurants, Wagamama and West Ham United, amongst others. Leech Group Services is currently working on a new project called CAU in Bristol and most recently completed works on Caterina 55.

For Caterina 55, Leech Group Services provided kitchen ventilation comprising of UV, ESP and Carbon Filtration, air conditioning utilising the buildings chilled water system, internal restaurant ventilation and associated wiring on the project.

Leech Group Services Projects Manager, Richard Russell, said:

Caterina 55 is built around the orchestra pit and stage of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with luxury apartments above. The challenge was to design and build a complete HVAC system that met stringent noise and odour controls within a limited space, whilst delivering the project on budget and time. I am pleased that all the criteria were met due the diligent work carried out by all at Leech Group Services and we were pleased to have been a part of this project.”

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Roma Publications