European eats in Shanghai as Jason Atherton takes on Table No. 1

After the announcement that Scott Melvin, who managed both kitchens at the Gordon Ramsay Group’s maze and maze Grill in London, was presented as head chef for the much-anticipated Table No. 1 at the new design boutique hotel The Waterhouse, the next question on everyone’s lips was, “Who’s actually going to run the place?” 

Wonder no more, the secret is finally out: Jason Atherton, having left the Gordon Ramsay Group this April, will be running his first restaurant away from maze, according to a recent press release and the already active Facebook fan page. 

Now officially named Table No. 1 by Jason Atherton, this gastro-bar will be Atherton’s first restaurant in Asia offering contemporary European cuisine in a “cosy, convivial atmosphere.” Think natural wood, exposed grey brick, portions made to share and four communal long dining tables in the main dining area. Shanghai’s socialites will learn to get cozy with each other quickly. 

“To subvert and provoke the normal social dining experiences, we consciously designed the private dining room in the restaurant with a view to the public street and have vertical voyeuristic glimpses of selected rooms from the public dining area. This recurring blurring of public and private concept is also a reflection of everyday life in Shanghai,” says Lyndon Neri of the Shanghai-based Neri & Hu Design and Research Office, which was commissioned to transform the building. 

Atherton has worked under a number of celebrated chefs including Pierre Koffman, Nico Ladenis and Marco Pierre White. He joined the Gordon Ramsay Group in 2001 as the executive chef for Verre in Dubai. In 2005, he returned to the UK to start maze, winning a Michelin star the next year for his efforts. Already known are Table No. 1’s signature dishes (start salivating now). They include caramelized squid ink croutons and onion puree, beef sirloin with smoked spring onion and pot potatoes, slow cooked pork belly and mango, and rose tea trifle with lychee granite. 

Following the recent growth of the local food movement in Shanghai, Atherton will be sourcing much of the produce locally, according to his -- and chef Melvin’s -- fundamental food philosophy. “The soul of a restaurant is not the celebrity chef but the freshest local produce,” explains Atherton.