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London restaurants have been hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis — interrupted trade, job losses, and debt headaches. Now, 14 months and three lockdowns since Prime Minister Boris Johnson first ordered Britons to stay at home, it still remains unclear just how many restaurants have fallen victim to the pandemic. Over the next month, as restaurants reopen their dining rooms, the reality and number of those closures should become clearer.
Whether their dining rooms made social distancing impossible, lockdowns saw money run out, or making rent deals with landlords has proved insurmountable, here is a running list of London restaurants that we know have closed during the coronavirus crisis.
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Santa Maria Pizzeria
What: The Ealing branch of one of London’s first (and still, best) Neapolitan pizzerias
When: May 2021
Why: The site is becoming a vegan-only pizzeria, with a new site open nearby; another new site is also coming — on the other site of the city.
Bar Boulud at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel
What: Italian restaurant which had gone about its business unfashionably since 1971 — serving fresh pasta in Soho long before it got hyped out of all proportions.
When: October 2020
Why: Its 10-year lease expired and business had been impacted by the pandemic.
Terroirs
What: The progenitor of London’s natural wine and restaurant.
When: June 2021
Why: Not yet known.
Vasco and Piero’s Pavilion
What: Italian restaurant which had gone about its business unfashionably since 1971 — serving fresh pasta in Soho long before it got hyped out of all proportions.
When: April 2021
Why: An apparent dispute over rent with its landlord.
Harry Morgan
What: A renowned and cherished Jewish deli in St. John’s Wood famous for its salt beef, chicken soup, and latkes.
When: April 2021.
Why: Reportedly, a rent dispute with landlord Trophaeum Advisors.
Rochelle Canteen at the ICA
What: Margot Henderson and Melanie Arnold’s transplant of their famed Shoreditch enclave to the Mall.
When: September 2020.
Why: The impact of Covid-19.
Tea Garden
What: Warm hospitality and outstanding, idiosyncratic dim sum from a Fujian couple in Surrey Quays, including some brilliant xiaolongbao and some evil cheeseburger spring rolls.
When: Early 2021.
Why: Unknown.
Blixen
What: Plant-filled European restaurant and garden in Old Spitalfields Market.
When: Autumn 2020.
Why: Downturn in the market owing to Covid-19 restrictions. Irish burger chain Coqandbull has taken over the site, according to Propel.
Les Nenettes
What: Charming women-owned and women-run French bistro in Clapton owned by Biarritz restaurateur Eve Ricard.
When: Unknown.
Why: Unknown. The restaurant’s website is no longer in use; its Instagram account is private, and the premises is now occupied by a restaurant called The Square.
Zelman Meats
What: Massive steak restaurant in Soho’s St. Anne’s Court from the team behind Goodman meats and Burger and Lobster.
When: Unknown. But the site is listed with a restaurant property agent with a rental value of £330,000 per year.
Why: Unknown. Zelman is continuing host virtual dinners and send meat boxes nationwide.
The Halal Guys
What: The popular New York City chain that started as a street cart.
When: February 2021.
Why: Its central London restaurant couldn’t survive the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Street Xo
What: Dabiz Muñoz’s Mayfair offshoot of his zany, at times obnoxious Madrid restaurant, that opened in 2016.
When: December 2020.
Why: The restaurant will close as a result of both the novel coronavirus pandemic and the impending economic impact of Brexit.
Roganic
What: Chef Simon Rogan’s Marylebone restaurant, which made its debut in 2011 and returned after a hiatus in 2018.
When: 14 December 2020.
Why: The restaurant claims that this is a relocation, not a permanent closure, with discussions for a new site going back to 2019.
Roux at Parliament Square
What: Celebrity chef Michel Roux Jr. and Steve Groves’ Westminster restaurant.
When: 7 December 2020.
Why: The restaurant cited an incredibly difficult year and “ongoing uncertainty” as the reasons behind its permanent closure.
Red Rooster
What: One of 2017’s biggest openings saw NYC chef Marcus Samuelsson make his London debut, opening a second outpost of his celebrated Harlem restaurant, Red Rooster, inside the Curtain Hotel in Shoreditch.
When: October 2020.
Why: The Curtain, like the Ace Hotel before it, has closed as a result of COVID-19. With it, the restaurant and bar are gone.
Tracks and Records
What: A restaurant in Liverpool Street from world-famous athlete and Olympian Usain Bolt.
When: November 2020.
Why: Bolt’s partner company said: “Unfortunately, in light of the coronavirus pandemic, it is no longer viable to continue to operate Tracks & Records with new trade restrictions in place.”
The Conduit
What: A Mayfair members’ club with more memorable food than most, formerly overseen by renowned chef Merlin Labron-Johnson
When: October 2020.
Why: Failed to reach a debt restructuring deal with its bank and was placed into administration.
Sushi Bar Atari-Ya
What: The no-frills outstanding sushi bar in Ealing Common, which has served a sizeable local Japanese community for decades.
When: October 2020.
Hung’s
What: The Wardour Street institution, known for Cantonese roast meats and steaming bowls of noodle soup.
When: October 2020.
Why: Heavily reliant on late-night trade, central downturn and the coronavirus curfew have hammered the business.
Kym’s
What: Celebrated chef Andrew Wong’s Cantonese roast meat restaurant in the Bloomberg Arcade in the City.
When: 25 September 2020.
Why: “It is with a heavy heart that we have decided not to reopen Kym’s. The decision comes after careful consultation with partners & staff,” the restaurant wrote on Twitter.
Milkbar Soho
What: The low-key excellent coffee shop in Soho, sibling to the legendary Flat White on Berwick Street.
When: 22 September 2020.
Bulldog Edition
What: The quality cafe and freelancers’ paradise at the Ace Hotel in Shoreditch.
When: 11 September 2020.
Why: The entire venue will close as a result of COVID-19.
Hoi Polloi
What: The sceney all-day restaurant at the Ace Hotel in Shoreditch.
When: 11 September 2020.
Why: The entire venue will close as a result of COVID-19.
Tibits
What: A duo of global buffet vegetarian restaurants, known for their eclectic range of cuisines.
When: Early September 2020.
Why: The buffet and salad bar model is not compatible with the novel coronavirus crisis, as U.K. supermarket Morrisons found out with its sacks of wet eggs.
Vanilla Black
What: One of London’s best, most innovative, and long-standing vegetarian restaurants.
When: Announced by owners Andrew Dargue and Donna Conroy on 30 August 2020.
Why: Dargue said: “As a direct side effect of Covid-19 we are deeply saddened to announce that we are unable to see a financially viable way to re open Vanilla Black on it’s [sic] current site.” He added that the “effects of the last few months have been immensely devastating.” The owners said they hoped to open at a new location in the future, and they didn’t see this as the end of Vanilla Black.
The Mountgrove Bothy
What: A Highbury wine bar and deli known for hosting some of the city’s most exciting residencies, including Chinese Laundry and AngloThai.
When: Announced by the owners on 20 August 2020.
Why: Having operated a bottle shop and deli service through lockdown, owners Gemma Murray and Gareth McAinsh said “A massive thanks to everyone that’s ever supported/worked/visited and shared a glass or two at The Bothy. It’s been 6 years of stress, pressure, blood, sweat and tears but it time to move on.”
Piebury Corner
What: A pair of pie shops beloved by north Londoners and Arsenal fans.
When: Announced by the owners on 19 August 2020.
Why: While hoping to relocate, owners Paul, Nicky, Spencer and Larianna say that “landlords at both sites still demanding rent in full” and the lack of crowds for Arsenal games are forcing them to shut down for now.
Forza Win
What: Hypebeasty, cult-followed-but-genuinely-good Italian restaurant in a Peckham warehouse.
When: On 19 August 2020, the restaurant announced on Instagram that intends to relocate.
Counter Culture
What: The Clapham wine bar sibling to Robin and Sarah Gill’s The Dairy.
When: Announced by the owners on 18 August 2020.
Why: The Gills said on Instagram that “the pandemic has hit us harder than we ever imagined it would.”
The Dairy
What: Robin and Sarah Gill’s pioneering amalgam of New Nordic dining and modern British cuisine in Clapham Common, which opened in 2013.
When: Announced by the owners on 18 August 2020.
Why: The Gills said on Instagram that “the pandemic has hit us harder than we ever imagined it would.”
Young Cheng
What: A Chinatown stalwart on Lisle Street, known for bowls of steaming noodles and an unrivalled Cantonese buffer.
When: The frontage has been removed and newspaper posted on the windows, apparently in the third week of August.
Emilia
What: The smart Italian restaurant at Bonhams Auction House, Mayfair, from the group behind London institution The Quality Chop House.
When: Co-owner Dan Morgenthau announced the closure on Monday 17 August.
Why: With the group’s other restaurants more suited to embracing neighbourhood dining and deliver, owners Will Lander and Dan Morgenthau decided that Emilia “was not well placed to trade well in the post-Covid world.”
Sweet Chick
What: The American comfort food restaurant backed by world-famous rapper, Nas.
When: No formal announcement was made, but the London location website has shut down.
Jidori
What: The original branch of the yakitori brand from Natalie Lee-Joe and Brett Redman, which opened in Dalston in December 2015.
When: 8 August 2020.
Why: Lee-Joe said on Instagram: “We have absolutely loved our 4.5 years in Dalston, it has been a blast but this global pandemic has proven a bit too much for our small shop.”
Cub
What: The minimalist, zero-waste, fermentation-reliant restaurant on Hoxton Street from Ryan Chetiyawardana and Doug McMaster.
When: 7 August 2020.
Why: Chetiyawardana told Eater that while one metre social distancing simply wouldn’t work at the restaurant-bar, it was also a result of coronavirus’ broader impact on supply chains: “Covid hit at precisely the perfectly worst time. It also exposed just how fraught our system is.”
Lucknow 49
What: The Mughlai restaurant in Mayfair from Dhruv Mittal, which opened in April 2019.
When: Mittal put the restaurant on the market in early August.
Why: He says that Lucknow 49 is closing because of a mixture of health measures and financial impasse. “With distancing measures in place, and with the costs that we have of operating a restaurant in central Mayfair, it just isn’t feasible for us to operate to survive. Landlords have been equally unhelpful in adjusting rent, or offering deferrals/rent reductions of any sort, which has meant that we have no other option but to close.”
Oklava Bakery and Wine
What: The pide-heavy follow-up to Shoreditch restaurant Oklava from Selin Kiazim and Laura Christie, which had taken the place of Kyseri.
When: Kiazim announced the Fitzrovia bakery’s closure on 2 August.
Why: Kiazim said that because of COVID-19’s impact on footfall, “there are not enough people in central London and the surrounding areas” to make the business work, with the closure being part of the “effort to save our Shoreditch restaurant.”
Dominique Ansel Bakery and Treehouse
What: The entirety of pastry celebrity Dominique Ansel’s London operations, including the original Belgravia pastry shop and newer Covent Garden cafe-restaurant.
When: The end of August 2020.
Why: The two sites are run on license from Dominique Ansel Bakery (DAB) in the U.S., which has deemed them unable to be profitable.
Bubbledogs
What: Sandia Chang’s grower champagne and hotdog bar in Fitzrovia.
When: August 2020.
Why: Its two-Michelin-starred sibling is taking over the space.
Bodega Rita’s
What: The quality nook of a sandwich shop in King’s Cross from Missy Flynn and Gabe Pryce.
When: They announced the closure at the end of July.
Why: The duo said it is “impossible for us to continue safely towards our long term goals” in such a small space, both practically and safety.
Sree Krishna
What: South London’s first South Indian restaurant, which opened in February 1973.
When: Closure reported on 10 July 2020.
Why: It is not known whether its closure is a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but the restaurant was well-established, popular, and thriving at the end of last year. Read more about the restaurant here.
Cereal Killer Cafe
What: Retro cereal specialist with cafes on Brick Lane and in Camden.
When: 9 July 2020.
Why: “After a long period of closure due to Coronavirus, and with the future of the hospitality industry looking very uncertain, we have made a decision that our Cafes on Brick Lane and Camden will not reopen their doors,” the owners said on Instagram.
Shepherdess Cafe
What: All-day caff, serving English breakfasts, hot chips, and sandwiches off City Road in east London.
When: 6 July 2020, after 37 years.
Why: “Circumstances, Covid-19, increased rents and a lack of sympathy from agents and landlords have all come together and forced the issue,” the owners said after the announcement was made.
The Greenhouse
What: Two-Michelin-starred fine-dining restaurant in Mayfair
When: Announced 27 June 2020.
Why: Executive chef Alex Dilling did not go into details on Instagram, saying only that his tenure, the “last 2 years have” — had been “an amazing journey.”
Darjeeling Express
What: Asma Khan’s celebrated Indian restaurant in Kingly Court, Soho.
When: Announced 25 June 2020.
Why: Khan said plans to relocate were already afoot before the pandemic forced it to close. After that, “everything went pear-shaped,” she said in June. The chef-restaurateur is planning to open at a new location in central London in the coming months.
Percy Ingle
What: 66-year-old cherished East London bakery chain with 48 sites.
When: 22 June 2020.
Why: After closing in March, Percy Ingle bakeries reopened in May, but in June, because of a multitude of factors, the company announced it would begin a phased closure of all sites. It opened its first bakery in Hackney in 1954. In a statement, the company said: “With a market that is highly competitive, a product that is exceptionally labour intensive to make and a consumer that is highly price conscious it is difficult to see that we would be getting any return on such an investment on top of the many millions of pounds that has already been invested in recent years.”
Sardine
What: Chef Alex Jackson’s restaurant off City Road focused on the cooking of the Languedoc and Provence in southern France. It opened in 2016, with the support of restaurateur Stevie Parle.
When: Announced 18 June 2020.
Why: Jackson said: “For our small space any kind of social distancing would be very difficult to implement and we do not have the resources to trade through the inevitably difficult times ahead.”
Indian Accent
What: One of London’s best contemporary Indian restaurants. A NYC and Delhi import.
When: Announced 16 June 2020.
Why: “[...]considering all the factors in play as a direct result of COVID-19. Social distancing would reduce the restaurant capacity to just 30 covers. This combined with the significant fixed costs as a result of operating on one of the most expensive streets in the world and the general economic uncertainty in the UK, means that the business is unviable at its current location,” a statement said.
Le Caprice
What: Caprice Holdings’ Richard Caring’s flagship, a restaurant which symbolised London’s glitziest dining inclinations. The room, once a favourite of Princess Diana, sat on Arlington Street in St. James’s; it first opened (under different management) in 1947.
When: 15 June 2020.
Why: No specific reason was given, other than to say that it would not renew its lease at the location on Arlington Street. Director Jesus Adorno said it would relocate elsewhere, adding that would come “asap.” No news has yet been shared.
The Ledbury
What: Chef Brett Graham’s 15-year-old, revered two-Michelin-starred restaurant in Notting Hill.
When: Announced on 9 June 2020.
Why: “We can’t keep customers and staff safe,” Graham said. “If there was an outbreak at the Ledbury, then it would be devastating. I just can’t think of any way to [reopen].” He added that any form of social distancing wouldn’t work at his restaurant and that he had no confidence that The Ledbury’s customer base would be able to revisit in the near future. “The economy is smashed; there are no customers in hotels, no international flights,” he said. “The [existing] business model is not viable.”