Maison Novelli was a restaurant in Clerkenwell, Central London, located opposite the Old Session House.

[7] The restaurant was managed by Monsieur Irénée, who stated that he "wanted to create a friendly, informal atmosphere at Maison Novelli, while providing the very best levels of service.

[9] Eric Patton followed as restaurant manager at the end of 1997 and left in the summer of '98 to run Novellis bistro aptly named The Ark [10] based in Notting Hill.

In 2002, Novelli left the London restaurant scene to become head chef at Auberge du Lac in Hertfordshire.

Winner criticised the action and thought it was a set up by Novelli as a media team were ready to film him being removed.

But change is in the air, and Jean-Christophe Novelli was planning a revamp of the entire Clerkenwell premises as we went to press.

"[22] However, The New Yorker stated "Jean-Christophe Novelli is one of the heroes of the Mod Brit movement, and his restaurant has drawn gastronomes from the day it opened.