Mel Brown to open new Brixton wine bar

New Zealand-born, London-based entrepreneur Melanie Brown is to open a neighbourhood bistro and wine shop called The Laundry in Brixton this autumn.

Mel Brown is to open a modern bistro, wine bar and shop called The Laundry in Brixton this autumn

Housed in Walton Lodge, an Edwardian building on Coldharbour Lane just outside Brixton Village, The Laundry will be open all day, every day.

Details of the menu are being kept under wraps, but the venue will serve pastries in the morning, brunch at weekends, and lunch and dinner every day, paired with a broad selection of wines by the glass and craft cocktails.

The food will focus on simple ingredients with impeccable provenance. On the interiors front, expect antique mirrors, emerald walls and vintage furniture sourced by Brown.

“The Laundry is an exciting coming together of my diverse experience in hospitality over the last 20 years. Creating an understated environment, quality food and a playful, accessible wine list is testament to the integrity of this beautifully-restored Brixton landmark,” Brown said.

Brown began her career in London at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen, Raymond Blanc’s Le Petit Blanc and Vinoteca. She then went on to work as a chef at Peter Gordon’s The Providores in Marylebone, and went on to become head sommelier at the venue, which, before it closed this year, boasted the capital’s only all-New Zealand wine list.

Post Providores, Brown went on to open The New Zealand Cellar and The Australian Cellar in Brixton, both of which are hybrid venues that serve as wine bars and shops with a relaxed approach to wine and a focus on boutique producers that often can’t be found anywhere else in the UK.