Nick Gilkinson to open Mæne restaurant in London’s Spitalfields

Nick Gilkinson, who opened Townsend restaurant in London's Whitechapel in 2020, is to open a new restaurant in Spitalfields this March.

Maene will be located at 7-9 Fashion Street and will be inspired by European bistro culture, offering relaxed, modern cooking using British produce.

The restaurant will take over the top floor of a Victorian clothing factory with a 50-cover terrace opening during the summer. The 54-cover restaurant will be open all day serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Dishes on the seasonal menu will include Mersea oysters with pickled jalapeño and sorrel (£4.50); allotment fritto misto with smoked chilli aioli (£6), La Latteria stracciatella, pickled squash, yesterday’s bread; and Springfield farm chicken with rosemary, garlic and burnt lemon and green goddess sauce (£28 for half a chicken) served alongside Keats farm salad and pickled onion and miso dressing (£4).

Puddings will include Yorkshire rhubarb; set Bermondsey honey cream; and bronze fennel and Sgroppino pear sorbet, English sparkling wine and elderflower (£8).

The space will have counter seating, an open kitchen, an 18-seat sharing table and banquettes. There will also be a 25-cover semi-private lounge and cocktail bar, serving drinks including sea buckthorn margarita and fig leaf gimlet. as well as non-alcoholic variations. The other three floors of the building will be occupied by Mission yoga studio.

Gilkinson said: “I am really excited to see Maene come to life, it is something we have been working on for a little while now. The bones of the building are so beautiful and I wanted to make sure we kept the integrity of the space while adding some softer touches to it, so it feels like somewhere that people want to be, a place for people to come together, whether it’s for a long dinner with friends, a drink at the bar or breakfast on the terrace after a yoga class.

"The food will be creative and unfussy with the chefs placing a real focus on working closely with our suppliers to make sure we are showcasing the best produce possible.”

The restaurant has been designed by Fare Inc, with a focus on natural textures, patina, zinc, wood finishes and cement. The name of the restaurant was described as an old English word “with connections to community”.

Photo: Rebecca Dickson