The modern Eastern Mediterranean restaurant Brother Marcus will open their third and largest site in London’s Spitalfields Market this November. Founded by Alex Large, Arthur Campbell and Tasos Gaitanos, Brother Marcus’ menu features produce sourced from the UK and the Eastern Med.
Set in modern industrial surroundings, Brother Marcus Spitalfields will be an all-day space which seeks to continue the success of their restaurants in Angel and Balham.
Brother Marcus Spitalfields will offer diners signature breakfast plates such as the Step Sister with sweet potato, courgette and feta fritters, avocado and spinach, kale, turmeric yoghurt and a poached egg, and the Brother Special with beetroot cured salmon, scrambled eggs with honey and sesame glazed tenderstem broccoli on toast.
To go menus will include freshly-squeezed juices, smoothies, coffee and Eastern Med-inspired pastries.
As the day progresses, a sharing menu will reflect the founders’ travels throughout the sun-soaked fields of Crete and the cities of the Eastern Med, with dishes including kefalotyri saganaki encrusted with seeds, and grilled pork sheftaliés, made with spiced pork mince wrapped in caul fat.
A large bread oven at the back of the restaurant will fill the space with the aroma of freshly-baked Turkish pide breads, while for those on the clock, there will be a dedicated salad counter featuring huge bowls filled with crunchy salads, ready to accompany falafel-stuffed wraps and pitas.
As evening draws in, the lights will be lowered, and diners encouraged to linger over slow-cooked shared dishes and glasses of natural wine at candlelit tables.
To drink, there’s a concise but considered wine list of bottles from around the world with a focus on minimum intervention producers, whilst classic cocktails are riffed on with unusual spirits and flavours such as resinous Greek mastiha and anise-heavy rakı – commonly found on tables around the Eastern Med. At weekends, brunch-lovers can take their pick from ouzo-spiked Bloody Marys and carefully cold-brewed coffees.
Interiors have been designed as an airy, light-filled space with a contemporary edge. Indoors, Brother Marcus Spitalfields is lined with banquette seating as well as larger tables for groups, and features flagstone flooring and natural wicker lampshades. Outside, there’s a pergola-covered courtyard with hanging plants, festoon lighting and heaters for chilly days. An outdoors counter will serve fresh coffees, in-house pastries and salads to go throughout the day, whilst during the evening it will transform into a sleek bar serving cocktails to the outdoor seating under the pergola.
“We’ve drawn great inspiration for the new restaurant from regular research trips to the Eastern Med – of course a few beers were drunk, but we’ve found so much fantastic produce and discovered exciting new recipes and techniques. We can’t wait to open in Spitalfields, where we’re looking forward to joining a thriving food scene. Our new home will feel slightly elevated and refined – Brother Marcus is growing up,” said the co-founders.