Photo Courtesy of Ferdi

Back in 2004 when Alicia and Jacques Fontanier opened the first Ferdi restaurant (named after their son Ferdinando) in the central and luxury Rue du Mont, only steps away from Place Vendome, the 30-seat gourmand restaurant was an intimate family-run operation. Soon enough Ferdi became an Insta-sensation (especially the home-made Mac Ferdi’s cheeseburger) and started welcoming world famous celebrities including: designers like Christian Louboutin; actors like Owen Wilson and Penelope Cruz; models like Gigi Hadid and Kendall who, after the Victoria Secret’s Fashion Show, snapchatted their unbelievable feast of margaritas, cheeseburgers and mac & cheese.

The new London opening in Shepherd Market is co-managed by the Fontanier’s niece, the 24 year old Olympia Irving, who has already worked with the couple in the Parisian restaurant for over a year.

Olympia had very clear ideas of how the space was going to look, personally choosing the interior’s colours and lighting. The London venue has its recognisable French character with a hint of British style (which means a Playmobil royal guard and an English policeman guarding the entrance door to welcome guests…). In keeping with the original Paris restaurant, which showcases toys and memorabilia from Ferdinando’s bedroom, Olympia brought the same style to London, decorating the place with stuffed animals like Paddington bear or the Queen bobblehead.

The extensive menu offers a variety of different dishes, some of which are quite unusual for a classic French restaurant such as nachos, Belgian waffles, caponata, mac & cheese and – of course – the infamous Mac Ferdi’s cheeseburger.

30 Shepherd Market, London W1J 7QN

PS. Reservations can only be made for dinner and only via SMS…