Le Manoir Group will open Epicurian, a restaurant located close to the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, on March 15.

The restaurant's kitchen, with "a new creative cooking concept," is led by chef Daniel Pălici, a long-time collaborator of the group, the company announced.

Daniel Pălici started his career in the world of gastronomy in 2014, after playing basketball at professional level. After training in Brașov, he worked in various restaurants, including for a culinary project of Le Manoir Group and his own project, the restaurant Grai. In 2018, he was nominated for the Great Chefs of Tomorrow award at the Gault & Millau Gala.

"Epicurian adds to the hospitality component of our company, with fine dining dishes created by Daniel from seasonal and local ingredients, whenever this is possible. What doesn't come from our gardens in Măgura is brought from producers that we have a direct relation with," Cristian Preotu, the founder of Le Manoir, explained.

Le Manoir estimates a 20% turnover increase at the group level this year, in the context of expanding its portfolio with an additional restaurant and another Comtesse du Barry concept store in the Dorobanți area of Bucharest, of the maturing of the gastronomic retail venue Le Manoir Gourmet Market, and an increase in the occupancy rate of Carpathian Estate.

The investments in new projects will amount to approximately EUR 500,000 and will entail creating 10-12 jobs, the company said.

Le Manoir Group includes the gastronomy and wine stores Comtesse du Barry, Le Manoir Gourmet Market, the first Relais & Châteaux restaurant in Eastern Europe, and the Bucharest restaurant Le Bistrot Français. It is the official representative in Romania of Eurocave, a French producer specializing in wine storage cabinets and display cases.

Epicurian is located at 3 Episcopiei St. It can accommodate 28 people. It will be open from Tuesday to Saturday.

(Photo: La Manoir)

simona@romania-insider.com