Kosher restaurateur and caterer Kenny Arfin intends to open a “New York-style brasserie” in the West End by the end of the year.

Mr Arfin, 55, who runs The Restaurant at Bevis Marks in the City of London, hopes to have found premises by the autumn.

“I’m looking to purchase a site in the West End,” he said this week. “But it needs to be the right size and at the right price so I’m biding my time.”

He is convinced of the demand, given that “customers visiting my Bevis Marks restaurant often come from the West End. They say: ‘Why don’t you open a branch in town?’ I always take on a challenge and I know I can make this work.”

The plan would be for “an updated version” of the Bevis Marks establishment, “with our current chef working as an executive chef”. The ideal site would seat around 100 and would also be available for corporate events and simchahs.