Holborn Dining Room might have stayed one of London’s best kept foodie secrets had it not been for executive chef Calum Franklin’s Insta-fame. He started to post pictures of his adventures in pâté en croute (traditional French pastry work which uses metal moulds to turn out intricate pastry covered works of art) which food fans loved.

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The menu expanded to include beautifully crafted seasonal pies including chicken, girolle and tarragon, and mutton curry pie. But it’s not just the pastry punters come for, there’s real expert classic cooking from the team here in mains such as smoked haddock with poached egg and mustard sauce, or pot-roast lamb breast with remoulade and green sauce. The starters are equally legendary so we’re thrilled to be able to share two of them (the scotch egg deserves its own fan club).

Holborn Dining Room is one of the most beautiful rooms in London. It’s huge with a fancy French brasserie feel, but the banquettes and tables are placed so each dining space feels cosy and intimate. The room is flanked down one side by a stunning gin bar with more than 400 varieties available, and the specialist gin cocktails are not to be missed – try the herbal negroni, a heady mix of V11 Hills Gin, Punt e Mes and Cynar. The dawn-til--dusk dining means the space is forever buzzing – this is a real little gem tucked away from the main road inside the plush Rosewood Hotel.


Calum Franklin's recipes

Beetroot and gin cured salmon

Executive chef Calum Franklin shares some reimagined British classics from the menu at Holborn Dining Room, including this beetroot and gin cured salmon. This recipe is super quick and serves as a perfect dinner party starter.

Beetroot and gin cured salmon

Scotch egg

The humble scotch egg is one of The Holborn Dining Rooms most popular starters. Here, chef Calum Franklin serves it with a quick and easy caper mayo.

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Scotch Egg The Holborn Dining Room

Curried mutton pie

The Holborn Dining Room offers beautifully crafted seasonal pies including this mutton curry pie. This recipe by Chef Calum Franklin, takes a little effort, but is the perfect meal to impress your friends this weekend.

Mutton Pie Recipe

Meet the chef: Calum Franklin

Calum worked at Chapter One in Kent, The Ivy, One Aldwych and Roast in Borough Market before joining Holborn Dining Room at Rosewood London as head chef.

The best thing on my menu is the rare beef, broccoli and lambs lettuce salad with truffle dressing. It’s the essence of our menu in a dish, showcasing the amazing work of our butchers and vegetable growers on the plate, in a very British way.

In my fridge there’s always Abernethy smoked butter, Sobrasada Iberico (chorizo paste), Parmigiano Reggiano, treacle cured smoked bacon and old Jamaica ginger beer.

My most-used cook book is currently Persiana by Sabrina Ghayour – the recipes are creative, fresh and great for cooking with and for the family.

My favourite 15-minute supper to make at home is egg noodles stir fried with broccoli, ginger, chilli and garlic.

A food/restaurant trend I see sticking around is Japanese/US crossover cuisine – popular in restaurants and street food at the moment

My guilty pleasure? Pickled onion Monster Munch!

A fellow chef I admire is Simon Rogan. I like the direct connection between his delicious food and his farming.

I love eating at Duck & Waffle – it’s open 24 hours, the cuisine is inventive and fun and the views are amazing! The foie gras crème brûlée is a must-try.

A place I love that not many people know about is Somsaa at Climpsons Arch in East London - a Thai restaurant serving authentic regional dishes with unique ingredients cooked by some of the UK’s most talented guys.

If you gave me a tenner I‘d spend it on Bread Ahead Doughnuts by Justin Gellaghty in Borough Market….everytime!

Never trust a chef who hasn’t got all his fingers and thumbs!

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@chefcalum @HolbornDining

Chef Calum Franklin in chef whites

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