Clerkenwell residents will see a new hospitality and arts venue open in March at the Grade II* Old Sessions House.
Sessions Arts Club will occupy the upper levels and rooftop terrace of the former Magistrates’ Court on Clerkenwell Green.
The venue will hold seasonal exhibitions, resident artists, cultural talks and a 60-cover restaurant.
The project is managed by painter Jonny Gent, who partnered with restaurateur Jon Spiteri, one of the founders of Michelin-starred restaurant St. John in Smithfield, which has promoted a resurgent interest in offal dishes.
Chef Alex Vines, will develop a British menu with “Mediterranean influences over the summer months”, according to a statement from the club.
The venue will also hold a series of events each year, and plans to host a yearly programme of exhibitions in the gallery space.
Sessions Arts Club will only be able to sell alcohol until after midnight on weekends and 11pm during the week, as a condition of their approval from the council.
This was finally granted in October last year, after a series of complaints from local residents about potential noise pollution.
This was the second dispute building owners Ted and Oliver Grebelius have had over noise complaints, after campaign group Friends of Clerkenwell Green scuppered the Grebelius’ brothers’ previous plans to sell alcohol in August 2018 in a different project.
