The timeless, sun-kissed glamour of the Italian coastline has arrived in one of Europe’s first “grand hotels” – the 1865-built Langham, near Regent Street – in the form of Sale e Pepe Mare. It’s the long-awaited sequel to Sale e Pepe, which opened in Knightsbridge more than 50 years ago, and promises all the theatre of its sister restaurant.
When Sale e Pepe opened in 1974, its classic approach to Italian dining established it as a hangout for the likes of Rod Stewart, Roger Moore and Diana Ross.
“I used to go [to Sale e Pepe] as a kid, with my parents,” says owner Markus Thesleff, who also has Los Mochis, Viajante87 and Juno in his Thesleff Group stable. “It was the sickest room.” At the time, it was one of a small cluster of heavyweight Italian restaurants in London, including San Lorenzo, which opened in Knightsbridge in 1963, and Chelsea’s La Famiglia, founded in 1975.
“Lots of families would be regulars, and we had an account there,” Thesleff says. “I remember when I was 16 or 17, my friends and I would sneakily go there when our parents weren’t around, smash our parents’ accounts and then try to bullshit our way into nightclubs.”
When he finally returned to the restaurant as an adult, its eccentric long-time owner Toni Corricelli was looking for a change. Sale e Pepe had attracted interest from would-be buyers before, but according to Thesleff, Corricelli was wary of anyone who wanted the name without the responsibility.
“For me, it wasn’t about buying a brand,” he says. “It was about being a custodian of a London icon.” He took it over in 2022 but, rather than announcing the change immediately, he spent time behind the scenes learning how the restaurant worked. “I wanted to improve it, but I didn’t want to destroy the DNA.”
Armed with the brand of warm, theatrical service Corricelli built over decades, Thesleff hopes Sale e Pepe Mare will add to the institution’s legacy. But this iteration takes a different tack when it comes to food. The menu is inspired by the Italian coastline, from Amalfi all the way down to Sicily, with indulgence arriving in lighter seafood dishes. “People want to eat cleaner now,” Thesleff says. “That doesn’t mean less pleasure – just a different balance.”
A dramatic seafood display of Cornish crab, Scottish langoustines and Italian sea bass leads into the dining room, which is clad in wood panelling, polished marble and azure velvet. A walk-in wine room showcases an Italian-heavy list of “super Tuscans” and bottles from the Gaja estates.
Caesar salad and cacio e pepe – both Sale e Pepe signatures – are mixed tableside while champagne trolleys circulate through the space. Larger-than-life towers of fruits de mer arrive on glistening gold platters, while classics such as delicate lobster linguine and salt-baked whole sea bass sit alongside clams and steaks straight from the Josper grill.
A dessert trolley – which includes tiramisu, ricotta cheesecake and lemon meringue tart – is a familiar Corricelli flourish, as is a long-running prank involving a fake cappuccino spill (which has divided opinion for decades).
Thesleff says the trolleys, jokes, bells and whistles are essential to survive in London’s competitive and ever-changing restaurant landscape.
“We’re not in hospitality anymore,” he says. “We’re in entertainment. We compete for time. You could be at home with your family watching Netflix, you could be on a plane, you could be at the gym or the theatre – or you could be at a restaurant. We’re in the business of making memories.”
Sale e Pepe Mare
The Langham, 1C Portland Place, W1B 1JA
02073620081
Hours:
Mon to Sat 7am–1am
Sun 7am–midnight
