Cin Cin to close London outpost as it plans for ‘next chapter’

In a statement posted to Instagram​​, Cin Cin founder David Toscano and group head chef Jamie Halsall said it ‘felt like the right time to consolidate their efforts’ and chose to close the restaurant after receiving a ‘fair offer’ for the Fitzrovia site.

The restaurant, which launched in the summer of 2021​​, will hold its final service on Friday 11 October.

“A lot has changed since opening in 2021, having completed the fit out during the last Covid lockdown,” said Toscano and Halsall.

“And so having received a fair offer for our little restaurant we feel now is the right time to consolidate our efforts and get back some headspace to work on the new projects we have been sketching out while trying to run two busy sites in two cities.
“We are of course sad to be passing the restaurant on and to be leaving the wonderful community of Fitzrovia who made us feel so welcome, but we are also proud of what we have created and excited for the next chapter for Cin Cin.

“We would like to thank all the staff who helped us build a following at Foley Street, especially the current staff who have been so understanding of this decision which obviously affects them too.

“Also massive thanks to our families who have supported us through this journey.”

The closure leaves the group with a single restaurant in Hove.

Cin Cin started out as a street food and pop-up outfit in Brighton and Hove that traded from a vintage Fiat van and majored in Italian cured meats, cheese and prosecco.

In 2016, Toscano, working with Halsall, moved the business into a former MOT garage in a central but decidedly off pitch location on Vine Street in the city’s North Laine area.

The pair opened their second restaurant on Western Road in Hove in January 2018​​, with the original Vine Street site eventually closing in late 2021 amid the fallout from the pandemic.