Hooray Henrys trade down as credit crunch bites

London has long been a bolthole for refugees of all different nationalities, but Kitchen Rat can report the discovery of a new variety - the Chelsea Refugee.

Seen pictured here, they are hurting financially from the credit crunch and consequent troubles in the city, combined with the prospect of recession, depression (both mental and economic) and most importantly, smaller bonuses.

It seems, however, this group has already started to cut its cloth according to its width.

Upmarket brasseries are seeing an increasing amount of these Chelsea gastronomes trading down from their traditional Michelin-starred haunts to humbler eateries.

However it appears that these chaps, while trading down on venue, refuse to compromise on quality, so much so, that one mid-market restaurant has actually had to increase the size of its top end wine list to cope with demand.

If one can't afford a Chateau d'Yquem at Ramsay's on Royal Hospital Road, perhaps a nice steak and a bottle of plonky Chateauneuf du Pape at Sophie's on the Fulham Road will have to suffice instead.  It's tough at the top eh?