Acclaimed chef opens live-fire restaurant IGNI in Mayfair

Michelin-laden chef Theo Clench has opened a live-fire restaurant in Mayfair, a 34-cover space using a central fire grill in place of gas or electricity.

Date published: 23rd Apr 2026

Michelin star chef Theo Clench has opened a new restaurant in Mayfair. Live-fire restaurant IGNI, which has opened on the former site of another Michelin-starred institution HUMO, is open now from Monday to Saturday every week. 

Originally from Brighton, Clench began working in kitchens at 14 before moving to the capital at 22 to hone his craft. After gaining experiences at revered restaurants like two star The Clove Club in Shoreditch and one star Akoko in Fitzrovia, he received his own star after five months as head chef of his own establishment Cycene, also in Shoreditch. 

Backed by the Creative Restaurant Group, IGNI is a 34-cover space alongside a 10-cover chef’s table that uses no gas or electricity for its cooking, opting to instead use a central grill incorporating smoke and heat through every dish. Its tasting menus center around seafood drawing from Clench’s Brighton upbringing and “liquid drinks” that reimagine cocktails like dishes. 

IGNI is now open on George Street in Mayfair. 

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