A TOP chef is swapping his popular sharing plates for a new tasting menu when his York restaurant reopens.

Tommy Banks has unveiled the plans for Roots York in Marygate and The Black Swan at Oldstead, including different dishes, new layouts and amended opening times.

Following months of closure due to the coronavirus crisis, pubs and restaurants are allowed to start trading again from Saturday.

The Press Love Local Business campaign is supporting the efforts of businesses from all sectors as they get back on their feet by highlighting the steps they are taking.

Roots will welcome back diners from Friday, July 24, and will be open for service from Thursdays to Sundays.

Tommy who was Britain’s youngest Michelin-starred chef in 2013 heads the kitchen at The Black Swan which is owned and run by the Banks Family, who have farmed around Oldstead for generations.

He opened Roots York in September 2018 with his business partner Matthew Lockwood, as a sharing-plates restaurant.

“We’ve been building up our foraged stocks through the spring, and working hard on the farm and in the garden, and I can’t wait to share our wonderful harvest with you,” he wrote in a letter to guests.

Roots will no longer offer sharing plates; instead, there will be a tasting menu designed to be served as single plates.

“Behind the scenes I’ve been working with my team to develop a whole new dining experience for Roots, and it’s incredible. There will be a nod to popular dishes of the past, as well as new dishes, all still following the same ethos as before.”

The Black Swan’s restaurant and rooms will open from Wednesday, August 12, from Wednesday to Sunday each week.

Tommy said they had given the restaurant a makeover during the lockdown, including removing the dessert kitchen in the dining room to create more space between tables.

“I want to reassure guests that we will be opening with plenty of precautions in place to ensure both our staff and our customers are safe. This is our biggest priority, and we feel confident that when we open our doors we’ll be doing so in the safest way possible.”

The chef said he would also continue with the Made In Oldstead Food Box deliveries across the UK which he started during the lockdown.

“We have been overwhelmed by their popularity, and we appreciate people might be unable to visit restaurants as much as they’d like, and may still want to celebrate and dine at home. We are so pleased that we are able to continue to reach more of you across the UK.”

He thanked people for the "tremendous" support since the enforced closure in March.

“The kind messages, the photos of you enjoying our food boxes and the words of encouragement have really kept us going. Your support has allowed us to help our suppliers, take many of our staff off of furlough, and welcome the rest of the team back once we re-open.”

Love Local Business is sponsored by The York BID and NFU Mutual. To share your business story in the campaign, email details of what you are doing to Business Editor Nadia Jefferson-Brown at nadia.jeffersonbrown@thepress.co.uk