Thousands back Petersham Nurseries in fight over evening dinner service

Thousands of people have backed a campaign calling for Petersham Nurseries in Richmond to be allowed to continue its evening dinner service.

The restaurant, which is situated in a garden centre on the edge of Richmond Park and holds a Michelin green star, has been served with an enforcement notice by the council.

It has run pre-booked candlelit supper clubs in its greenhouses for over a decade under temporary event licences.

The restaurant team have spent 18 years working with Richmond Council to formally vary its opening hours but have yet to come to an agreement.

They have now lodged an appeal with the planning inspector after being told to cease evening operations. An inquiry is expected to take place this summer.

Petersham Nurseries, which held a Michelin star under chef Skye Gyngell from 2011-13, has been running a ‘Save Our Restaurant' campaign to gather support since March.

The venue already has a licence to serve alcohol in the evenings but warned that without a regular dinner service its future and staff jobs could be at risk.

Lara Boglione, managing director of Petersham Nurseries, said: "We have been blown away by the overwhelming support for Petersham Nurseries from our neighbours and visitors from Richmond and across London.

"We have had over 4,500 individual letters of support, on top of over 6,500 supporters for our petition in 2022.

"We are providing all this information to the planning inspector to show how important Petersham Nurseries is locally as a place to eat out and shop, as well as a strong local employer and economic driver."

Petersham Nurseries was opened by the Boglione family in 2004 after they bought a plant nursery overlooking the River Thames.

In an update on Instagram, the restaurant team said they had done "all we can" and hoped the campaign would help overturn the licensing decision.

The restaurant will remain open during the appeal process and continues to accept bookings.

For more information on the campaign visit https://petershamnurseries.com/

Image: Inspired By Maps / Shutterstock