Meet the chef: Nima Safaei of 40 Dean Street
Dubbed one of Soho’s best kept secrets, 40 Dean Street serves unpretentious Italian food that keeps customers coming back for more. So, what’s its secret?
Soho is a melting pot of cuisines and cultures, with tiny neighbourhood restaurants rubbing shoulders with award-winning eateries across the network of narrow alleys and winding streets that make up one of London’s most creative quarters. It’s a good mix of newcomers and stalwarts, some of which have been in residence on the likes of Berwick, Brewer, Warwick and Wardour Street for decades. So, if there’s one thing you can count on in Soho, it’s that there’s always somewhere to eat a fine meal here.
One of those oldie-but-goodies is 40 Dean Street. Celebrating 20 years of service under chef-owner and born-and-bred Londoner Nima Safaei – whose love for Soho knows no bounds – this Italian restaurant has become one of the area’s best-kept secrets, serving classic plates of bruschetta with San Marzano tomatoes, beetroot and goats cheese arancini, ravioli lobster and sea bass with prawns, clams and cavolo nero in a lemon sauce. Walk past on any night of the week and we’ll bet it’s busy. So busy, in fact, that in 2023, overwhelmed by demand and having to turn away too many customers, Safaei and his team opened another restaurant in Soho at 64 Compton Street.
All images: Luke Santilli Photography
While the food is excellent and unpretentious, Safaei – who originally studied pharmaceuticals before embarking on a career in hospitality – takes sourcing ingredients very seriously. Expect to find seafood from the fishmonger down the road, bread from Camisa, a beloved local bakery on Old Compton Street that opened in 1929, and coffee beans sourced from the historic Algerian Coffee Stores, a cornerstone of Soho’s coffee scene since 1887.
So, how does Safaei keep customers coming back for more, even when there’s so much competition cropping up around him? We find out.
I had a very happy childhood in Gloucester Road in London with my family. Food played a big part, but I didn’t discover my desire to become a chef until later in life. I originally wanted to work in the world of pharmaceuticals. While doing my masters at the University of Aston in Birmingham, I worked as one of the duty managers at the Executive Lounge in the Hyatt Regency Birmingham and totally fell in love with the hospitality industry.
I often visited Soho, and decided I wanted to purchase somewhere there as I loved the area so much. The site of 40 Dean Street became available and I originally intended to open a bar there, but then fell in love with the Italian restaurant that occupied it. The beginning of my gastronomic career!
Helping my grandmother in the kitchen. She was Persian, so when cooking her feasts, the house was filled with the most wonderful aromas. Her food was the moment I fell in love with big, bold flavours.
I truly believe the kitchen is the heart of the family, and she embodied that; I loved watching her cook as she was so skillful, she took bold, complex recipes and made them look so simple.
If I’m being completely honest, I found pharmaceuticals too boring! I thrive working in a bustling, social environment. The dynamic, people-oriented nature of hospitality felt far more rewarding to me as a career. It’s also an industry where I was able to embrace creativity but also get the opportunity to socialise and make people happy daily – something the solitary nature of pharmaceuticals did not offer me.
Alongside loving the Italian restaurant that originally inhabited the 40 Dean Street site, which totally led me to throw myself into Italian cuisine and everything it represented, my sister also grew up in Florence. 40 Dean Street is completely a family-run restaurant, and it’s a manifestation of both our passions for Italy, a country we truly love, and a tribute to our Italian heritage.
When I came to Soho more than 30 years ago, it was a thriving, buzzy scene full of exciting individuals – and so many of those people are still here. This is because Soho continues to evolve with the world, its trends and the people, which is testament to the area. I am also deeply embedded in the local community through the Soho Business Alliance, Saint Anne’s Church and the Soho Society – organisations I am so lucky and privileged to be a part of.
I think the Soho food scene caters for all. It’s excitingly multicultural, fitting for any occasion and most importantly of all, everybody is welcome.
I have two! I adore Bob Bob Ricard – an excellent restaurant where you always know you’ll get an incredible dining experience. My fail-safe meal there is prawn cocktail to start, the beef Wellington for two and then the tarte tatin to finish – sublime. And I can’t not mention The French House. A cornerstone of London and particularly Soho’s dining scene!
I’m going to give some inspirations of mine from the Soho food scene. I adore Leslie Lewis of The French House and Michelle Wade of Maison Bertaux. Two serious powerhouses running true institutions that Londoners should be proud of.
However, I would be remiss not to give Oisin Rogers of The Devonshire a mention. The way he operates is marvellous – the noise he created around the opening and how he has continued to maintain its popularity is incredible.
It has to be the seafood linguine. It’s such a delicious bowl showcasing the best of the sea complemented beautifully with a simple yet punchy tomato sauce. I rarely choose to eat anything else – I simply feel like I’m missing out if so!
Visit 40deanstreet.com
Read more: Meet the chef: Niklas Ekstedt of Ekstedt
