The Ivy Brasserie is coming to St Albans following the closure of Brasserie Blanc.

Brasserie Blanc in Verulam Road closed at the beginning of February after five years of trading in the city.

The St Albans branch of The Ivy will be the first to open in Hertfordshire, and is set to open in the late spring. It will be open seven days a week and will offer an all-day dining menu.

A number of tables at the restaurant will be held back for walk-ins per day, allowing diners to drop in at their leisure.

A statement from the restaurant read: “The brasserie will accommodate for 139 guests across the main restaurant and bar, a semi-private dining area seating 12, and Parisian-style terrace seating 18.

“The critically-acclaimed Martin Brudnizki Design Studio is consulting on the brasserie’s interiors, with notable features including an Arancia onyx bar, pendant lighting, marble floor tiles and polished parquet panel flooring, as well as a mixture of leather banquettes, dining chairs and bar stools.

“The Ivy Collection is a group of grills, brasseries and cafés, offering accessible, all-day dining for locals

and visitors alike. Each location is carefully chosen to value, reflect and add to the local area.”

Staff at Brasserie Blanc were offered the opportunity to relocate to another branch of the restaurant or partner White Brasserie Company pubs in the surrounding area.

A Brasserie Blanc spokeswoman said: “After over five years of positive trading in St Albans the decision to close the Brasserie Blanc has not been an easy one.

“We continually evaluate where the most appropriate locations are for our brasseries, this means we have a healthy programme of openings but also leads to us relocating or closing certain sites. The offer made to us by Caprice Holdings (The Ivy) was very attractive and will be invested into the expansion programme.

“We would like to thank all our wonderful guests for their custom and loyalty during our time in St Albans and invite them to visit one of our other Brasseries Oxford, Beaconsfield, Milton Keynes or one of our nearby pubs.”

The new restaurant, which will be at 1-3 Verulam Road, will serve breakfast, lunch, weekend brunch, afternoon tea, light snacks, dinner and cocktails.