High Down prison in Surrey is to launch a corden bleu restaurant where inmates will prepare and serve the food.
It appears to be every inch the fashionable new foodie destination, with a pan-European menu, mood lighting and contemporary design.
But this is a restaurant where there is razor wire on the roof and the cutlery is, by necessity, made of plastic.
"The Clink" at High Down prison in Surrey has its official launch tomorrow and is destined to be one of the most talked-about restaurant openings of the year.
Inmates are trained to prepare and serve ambitious dishes as part of an innovative new project to rehabilitate offenders and help them win a job on release from jail.
The plush new facility, which was paid for by £270,000 in charitable donations, serves as the staff canteen. Due to security concerns, members of the public will not be able to book a table in the usual manner but may eat there if they are invited as corporate guests or charity volunteers.
"We wanted a realistic, contemporary restaurant so that prisoners who are trained here can go into the real world," said Alberto Crisci, catering manager at the 1,100 inmate jail.
"Yes, we do have plastic cutlery but this is a prison. We would have preferred metal knives and forks but this is a unique dining experience."
Peter Dawson, the prison governor, said: "I will be interested in hearing from people who have a legitimate interest in prison to come in and visit The Clink.
"For example, we have already had an expression of interest from the local Rotary Club and I believe that would be legitimate because we will be able to ask those people if they are interested in employing former offenders."
For breakfast, prison officers at the medium security jail can chose from poached egg duchess served on a bed of spinach and encased in potato, for £2, or a high quality "full English", for £3.50.
Lunch options include griddled feather steak with Béarnaise sauce or chicken ballotine stuffed with oxtail and black pudding at £4.50 a plate.
"I'm sure the staff will say 'Four pound fifty? Flipping heck'. But it is a very good price for food of this quality. We will have to keep prices reasonable because if there are no customers there's no training," said Mr Crisci, who began his career as a commies chef at the famous Mirabelle restaurant in London's Mayfair and later worked in five star hotels.
The staff politely force a smile at jokes about "porridge" and "serving thyme", having spent several years planning and building The Clink, which is located in the prison's former laundry store room.
Prisoner and chef Tesfa Samuels, 32, from Bournemouth, who has spent five out of the last 10 years in jail, said he had been inspired by the training course.
"Hopefully by doing this I can break the cycle of crime and prison," he said.
"It's time I made a change. I would like to work in a top restaurant."
Organic produce served at the restaurant comes from the prison farm and other ingredients are locally-sourced.
The Clink boasts 50 covers in the main dining room which feature computer controlled multicolour lighting, a slate "feature wall" and furniture which was handmade by prisoners at Frankland jail in County Durham.
There is also a private dining area which seats 20, and gourmet menus will cost about £50 a head for invited guests only.
David Hanson, the prisons minister, said: "The Clink is an example of our commitment to ensure that prison is about more than locking offenders in cells and must also be about providing opportunities for offenders to gain real life, valuable skills and qualifications that will be of genuine use on their release."
Comment: And there I was thinking that Gordon Blue was all about the language from Gordon Ramsey...
UPDATE:
Prison cuisine: review
The Clink is Britain's first cordon bleu restaurant to be set up behind bars and here it gets its first review.
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