BILL OF THE WEEK
THE TOUGH times have finally reached Mayfair. When four private investors hit Bellamys on Bruton Place, they economised by settling for only the second-most expensive vintage on the wine list that prides itself on “accessible prices” – the 1982 Château Cos d’Estournel St Estèphe at £975. Add in a £150 bottle of 2007 Clos des Mouches and some fine French brasserie-style cooking by former Annabel’s chef Stéphane Pacoud, and you’re looking at north of £1,500, including service. Patron Gavin Rankin was “like the grave” when asked to name his oenophile associates, but did reveal some of his fellow investors in the consortium-owned restaurant: former M&S chairman Sir Stuart Rose and Jigsaw owners John and Belle Robinson.