'The journey is far from over': Native at Browns closes its doors

London restaurant Native has closed its outpost at Browns boutique store in Mayfair after struggling with an “array of challenges”.

Founders Imogen Davis and Ivan Tisdall-Downes wrote on Instagram that rising energy prices and “unexpected” rent increases had made it difficult for the restaurant to continue in its current home.

However, the pair said the “journey is far from over” and there were plans for a new permanent restaurant to open in 2024.

“It is with this reflection that we wish to inform you with a heavy heart that Native at Browns, our fourth incarnation of the nomadic concept that is Native is now closed,” the pair wrote.

“Due to the current hospitality landscape and the array of challenges that many restaurants have been faced with, including the soaring energy prices and unexpected rent increases, has meant that the overall ethos that Native underpins all its foundations around has been impacted by the ability to operate sustainably at our current home.

“With lots of creative plans and new concepts projected for the coming year ahead, we have decided that focus and energies are best shifted to the running of future projects.”

Davis and Tisdall-Downes initially launched Native close to London’s Borough Market before it relocated to Osea Island on the Essex coast during the pandemic and then opened at Browns in spring 2021.

Known for its focus on sustainable and foraged ingredients, the restaurant made headlines for serving a squirrel kebab in its earlier days.

The Browns opening was recommended in the Michelin Guide Great Britain and Ireland 2023, which praised its use of “prime ingredients in imaginative small plates”.

The pair said that Native would be going “back to its roots” over the next few months with plans to run several events.

They added: “Our nomadic spirit propels us forward, ready to embrace the unknown, to uncover hidden gems, and to weave them into the narrative of sustainability and gastronomy.”

Further updates on Native’s future will be posted on its website, social media accounts and via its mailing list.