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Stale fat smell from Aikens's chip shop has the neighbours sizzling
Ellen Widdup, Evening Standard4 Jun 2008
The smell of fish and chips normally makes the mouth water. But for chef Tom Aikens it has caused a bit of a stink among the neighbours of his Chelsea restaurant.
They have complained about the odour of stale cooking fat. Ex-diplomat Sir Michael Jenkins, who lives 40 yards from the Michelin-starred chef's Tom's Place, said: "I get a horrible smell."
He said Aikens, who was sacked by Pied ‡ Terre in 1999 for allegedly "branding" a 19-year-old trainee chef with a knife, had refused to listen to complaints.
Designer Laura Benjamin, who lives next door to the chip shop in Cale Street, added: "The smell is everywhere. The value of our flats has been halved and everyone is furious."
Miss Benjamin said a fan Aikens installed to disperse the smell only increased the problem. "There should be a state-of-the art filtration plant," she said. "Instead, there is a fan the size of two aircraft engines three inches from my terrace which spreads a poisonous so-called deodorant."
Aikens, 38, said he had done his best to improve the situation, adding: "The deodoriser is tested and approved or we wouldn't be allowed to use it. We've also changed our fat from beef to vegetable. It's very difficult to please everyone."
A spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea council said it has "instituted legal proceedings in the absence of works being carried out".
Reader views (2)
There are too many of these smelly grease joints in residential areas. Close them down and move them all away from peoples' homes.
- Mikko Takala, Drumnadrochit, Scotland, 05/06/2008 10:21
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The resident that claims the value of their flat has halved, should read the papers about the credit crunch and property value falling.
- Sukh, Ilford, 04/06/2008 14:14
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