The Yards to welcome Luci; Aqua Restaurant Group’s sixth London Restaurant
July 10, 2023
Acting on behalf of Longmartin Properties Ltd (a joint venture between Shaftesbury Capital and the Mercers’ Company), Davis Coffer Lyons has let a flagship 9,000 sq ft unit forming part of Covent Garden’s The Yards to Aqua Restaurant Group – the operator behind Aqua Shard, Hutong, Aqua Kyoto and Aqua Nueva as well as the recently launched Shiro – for a new Italian concept, Luci.
The group – which is based in Hong Kong – operates a collection of premium hospitality venues internationally, including restaurants in New York, Miami and Dubai. The group told Propel that the new opening will see its “brand of modern Mediterranean food and hospitality find a new and more casual home” in the two-storey site, replacing Jack Wills. Prior to that, in the early noughties, it was home to Le Palais du Jardin restaurant, so it has come full circle in returning to a hospitality use.
Luci’s ground floor will house a grab & go offering with sourdough loaves, Italian sandwiches, salads and pastries, whilst the first floor dining room will offer woodfired pizzas and traditional pasta, as well as a gelato counter. It will be a true all day operation, “whether a Cappuccino and a pistachio cornetto for breakfast or a slice of pizza and a Negroni as a nightcap”, according to Aqua’s CEO David Yeo.
Luci joins a strong and dynamic line-up of eating and drinking offers at The Yards, which is also home to Dishoom, Lahpet, Buns from Home, Gura Gura and the recently opened Olea Social.
Executive Director Tracey Mills commented: This flagship letting represents another exciting first for The Yards, demonstrating Covent Garden’s enduring appeal for exciting new entries to the London market.”
