Scott Hallsworth, the founder of Kurobata and former head chef at Nobu, is preparing to open his second Freak Scene restaurant in Balham, London.
Freak Scene Sushi and Robata is scheduled to officially open its doors on February 1st, following a soft-launch period commencing on January 18th.
The 80-seat restaurant will feature sushi crafted by former Kurobata sushi chef Yauheni Kharytonau, along with a curated selection of sakes by Oliver Hilton-Johnson from Tengu Sake.
The dining areas encompass a primary ground floor space, a private downstairs lounge, a covered outdoor patio, and a sushi bar, all under the supervision of restaurant manager Rich Hardcastle.
The menu will emphasize sushi and highlight the charcoal robata grill, featuring dishes such as grilled hispi cabbage with beurre noisette, ponzu, dried miso, and truffle, as well as Singapore chili crab.
Hallsworth said: 'I've selfishly been really keen to launch in Balham for while because it's where I live but it's also super lively and fast becoming a brilliant food hub for the greater area. Shifting the focus to sushi and grill allows us to have a lot of fun with menu categories which we haven't played around with yet. It'll display all of the hallmarks of my previous sites but it won't be just another Freak Scene.'
Having established restaurants in various global locations including Melbourne, Chamonix, and Nairobi, the chef collaborated with Australian comedian and television presenter Adam Hills to open the initial 46-seat Freak Scene in Parsons Green, London, in March of the previous year.
Freak Scene originated as a pop-up in 2017 before evolving into a permanent establishment.