London: Tom’s Kitchen

With the sun streaming in through windows that look out onto a charming side street in the Chelsea neighborhood of London, a bottle of chilled Sancerre on the table in front of you and the buzz of activity coming from the open kitchen in the back of this casual, inviting restaurant, Tom's Kitchen seems like an ideal spot to while away a lazy summer afternoon.

Nothing immediately tells you that you are having lunch at what has become Exhibit A of the newest trend to hit London's upscale dining scene: famous chefs going populist.

This brasserielike restaurant, opened in November, is the latest project from Tom Aikens (below right, with his twin brother, Rob), the chef whose Michelin-starred establishment — the aptly named Tom Aikens Restaurant — is just a few blocks away.

Like Gordon Ramsay before him, Mr. Aikens is slowly expanding his empire to include lower-priced alternatives to his high-priced mainstay. (For Mr. Ramsay's, that meant opening a high-end pub, the Narrow, in the Docklands of London in March.) In Tom's Kitchen, Mr. Aikens has created a space that is both minimalist and rich in atmosphere. The walls are decorated with oversized black-and-white photographs of local suppliers, and a steady stream of customers arrive through the day. Some come for breakfast after the restaurant opens at 7 a.m., maybe for brioche French toast with caramelized apples, cinnamon cream and maple syrup for £6.50 ($13.40, at $2.10 to the pound).

Others stop by for lunch, perhaps for Mr. Aiken's simple but seductive take on fish and chips (£14.50). And dinner, with dishes like “7-Hour Confit Shoulder of Lamb with Onions and Balsamic Vinegar for two” (£28.50 pounds ), seems to attract the same people who might have once paid much more for a dinner at Mr. Aikens's more established restaurant.

But neither Mr. Aikens nor Mr. Ramsay seems worried that their new places will cannibalize their old ones. Coming from Mr. Aikens is Tom's Place, an upscale fish and chips restaurant scheduled to open in September. And Mr. Ramsay is expected to open a second pub, called the Warrington, later this year.

Tom's Kitchen, 27 Cale Street SW3; (44-207) 349-0202; www.tomskitchen.co.uk;.