Flor permanently closes Borough Market restaurant

Flor, the acclaimed restaurant-turned-bakery in London, has permanently closed its original Borough Market location after two and a half years of trading.

The restaurant was launched in 2019 by James Lowe and John Ogier, the pair behind Michelin-starred Lyle’s in Shoreditch, with head chef Pamela Yung leading the kitchen.

In spring 2020, when Flor was unable to open, the restaurant temporarily pivoted to become pizza concept ASAP Pizza led by Yung.

The Borough Market site changed to become a bakery and wine shop last October, but closed for good over the weekend.

Flor Bakery at Spa Terminus in Bermondsey, which launched in December, will continue to trade, overseen by pastry chef Helen Evans.

A post on Flor’s Instagram page said: “We want to give a huge thanks for all the hard work and effort put in by those who worked here, from its crazy beginning, through lockdowns, via ASAP Pizza then reopening last summer.

“We’d also like to thank everyone who supported and supplied us through the last couple of years. It was very special to be a part of and you won’t be forgotten.

“We’re terribly sad to close but we are very excited to see how Flor Bakery develops. As many of you have already come to see, based out of Spa Terminus is our newest venture, spearheaded by Helen and her team of incredibly talented bakers.”

The post was later updated after facing criticism for failing to highlight Yung’s contribution. An additional comment said: “There are so many people that deserve more credit than a collective ‘thanks’ and I’m sorry they didn’t get it. It wasn’t our intention to overlook them in any way, especially Pam’s @wandrlstng contribution.”

Flor was originally backed by JKS Restaurants, which also supports restaurants including Bao, Kitchen Table and BiBi.

A post on JKS’ Instagram stated the site would remain with the group. It said: “We're excited to see the Flor brand continue to develop at the new bakery arch in Spa Terminus, and nationwide via flor-bakery.com.

“The site at 1 Bedale Street remains within the JKS family – stay tuned for updates very soon.”

Image: @jks_restaurants via Instagram