It’s been a long time since I wrote a blog post. The last one was on 16 May, and a lot has happened since then. The truth is, I’ve been wrestling with the future of The Warren for a long time, not just since we closed, but for many years before that. I’ve kept asking myself the same question: how do I keep this wonderful community of like-minded people connected to each other, and connected to everything The Warren has always stood for?
When I stop and think about what we achieved, it’s phenomenal, really. For nine years, The Warren supported local, seasonal and organic farmers, cooked food from scratch, employed local people and built a fantastic reputation, winning multiple awards along the way. It even managed to pay me a modest wage. Nine years in hospitality is quite something, especially while trying to hold on to those values and do things in a way we could feel proud of.
Since closing, I’ve finally had the time and space to begin processing what happened. I couldn’t do that while we were open because everything was so busy and so fast. It was get up, work, burn out, sleep, then get up and do it all over again. Even on the days off, there was the constant worry of running a business. It was endless and never really stopped. Strangely, stopping has sometimes felt harder than running. There’s been so much to process and so much recovery needed, a lot of sleeping, very little energy and a lot of learning how to slow down after years of not really being able to.
At the same time, I’ve spent the last eleven months paying to keep the restaurant and the business in limbo. I knew I could only keep that going for so long before I finally had to make a decision. I put The Warren up for sale, took it off, put it back on again and nearly took it off once more. Eventually, I realised that I don’t want to sell it. I want to try to find a way to make it work.
What we created together at the Lammas Street Centre reminded me how much I love The Warren and everything it could still become. It felt like something I’d always wanted from The Warren, but for some reason had never felt able to make happen. Perhaps that’s because I was looking at it the wrong way. It isn’t about me doing it; it’s about us doing it.
This next stage is an exploration to find out whether there are enough people who want to help create a new future for The Warren. I know there are so many people who love it and so many who miss it, and I genuinely believe our community still needs it. The farmers, the workers, the volunteers and the wider community all need places like this. Hospitality can bring so much to the place it calls home, but the industry has changed enormously because it has become so difficult to survive. Deep down, though, I still believe there’s another way of doing it, and that’s what I want us to try.
I think something like The Warren needs a community around it, and perhaps it needs a community to help run it too. It can’t all be driven by endless growth, shares and profit. It has to be built around shared values, local relationships and the belief that good food and genuine hospitality can make a place better. We’re going to find a way to make it work.
I’m incredibly excited, and I’m also fairly sure this is going to be the greatest challenge I’ve ever taken on. But right now, I feel as fresh and determined as I did ten years ago when I first took on 11 Mansel Street. The difference is that I’m now ten years wiser, and this time I have a whole army of people who believe we can do it. And I think we can.
So, watch this space and make sure you’re on the mailing list. Please comment, share, like, discuss and engage as much as you can. The online world is such a huge part of life now, and I think we need to be careful about that, but if we don’t engage with it, running a business in this day and age becomes even harder. Every bit of support helps us reach the people who might want to become part of whatever comes next.
I hope to see you at The Warren soon.
All my love, and wish me some luck because I’m going to need it.
Deri