Hennessy joins the hotel from The Ritz London where he was sous chef and brings over ten years’ experience in the industry to the modern European restaurant.

During his tenure as sous chef at The Ritz Hotel, he was part of the senior management team of the Michelin-starred kitchen and its brigade of 69 chefs heading up the main restaurant, private dining, room service and bar area. Prior positions include sous chef positions at the five-star The Rees Hotel in New Zealand and at Michelin-starred restaurant Campagne in Ireland.

Hennessy will be responsible for the development and implementation of the hotel’s menus for the Winter Garden Restaurant, private functions, events and room service as well as the day-to-day running of the kitchen health and safety, ordering and stock control.

Commenting on the news, he said: “I am thrilled to take on this new challenge and to be part of the dynamic team at the Winter Garden Restaurant. Marylebone has a vibrant dining scene, and I look forward to further elevating the food to reflect five-star positioning of the hotel.

“The restaurant will be offering a diverse range of dishes with the focus on balance and seasonality, allowing the quality ingredients to shine without fussy presentation. My overall objective is to firmly establish it as a destination restaurant, provide a memorable dining experience and a reason to visit the hotel.”

The Winter Garden Restaurant is an all-day dining and elegant establishment serving a menu of elevated British and European dishes, using high-quality and seasonal ingredients, with modern twists in homage to his global travels.

Exciting new dishes under his direction include:

• Seared venison carpaccio with Cabernet Sauvignon emulsion with pecan praline and blood orange
• Butter poached Scottish lobster with grilled calcot, spiced carrot purée and lemongrass glaze
• Citrus cured salmon with caviar and miso buttermilk dressing split with chive oil