Pidgin in London’s Hackney to close after nine years of trading

Pidgin in London’s Hackney will close after nine years of trading to make way for a new restaurant, Sesta Dining.

The east London eatery was opened by restaurateurs James Ramsden and Sam Herlihy in 2015 and became renowned for its weekly changing tasting menu.

Pidgin has since served more than 1,000 different dishes devised by a range of past head chefs, including Adolfo De Cecco, chef owner of the Michelin-starred Casa Fofō in London’s Hackney; Elizabeth Haigh, founder of Mei Mei London in Borough Market; and more recently Naz Hassan, who was previously at Bibi in London’s Mayfair.

The restaurant received a Michelin star in 2017, but lost it a year later.

In December last year, Pidgin announced it will reduce the number of courses on its tasting menu as there had been “less demand for this kind of eating” over the previous 18 months.

On a post on Instagram, Ramsden and Herlihy said: “Pidgin will take its final flight on Sunday 18th August and we will bid you all a very fond and grateful farewell. There are inevitably too many people to thank, too many highlights to mention, too many dishes to recall, so for now we will say a huge thank you to the current team, who have made Pidgin as good as it’s ever been, and to you, for all of your support over the years.”

Pidgin will be replaced by Sesta Dining, a new restaurant from “the enormously talented, creative, and fun current head chef Drew Snaith, and ex-Pidgin manager Hannah Kowalski”.

The founders added: “Many people dream of opening a restaurant. Not many dream of closing one. So while we’re sad to put a full-stop on this chapter, we are excited and reassured that two brilliant people will be realising their own dream.”