Mel sprinkles her stardust across Brixton

Cara Cummings meets the rising hospitality star reviving a piece of Coldharbour Lane history

Melanie Brown and Dylan Cashman

Want to see something special? Pop into The Laundry, a newly opened all-day bistro in the iconic Brixton building of the same name, and there’s a 99% chance you’ll find founder Melanie Brown wowing crowds with a talent so natural it must curl the very napkins of her fellow restaurateurs: pure, unadulterated hospitality. The Kiwi chef-turned-wine-impressario and brains behind Pop Brixton’s New Zealand Wine Cellar is the best of hosting, personified: warm, effusive and able to make every punter in a packed house feel like the most important person in the room.

In just five years, she’s grown the The New Zealand Cellar from an online idea to a top Brixton bar; expanded into Australian wine, with the rest of the new world club in her sights; and won more industry awards than you can shake a decanter at. Opening The Laundry now adds ‘restaurant founder’ to her already bulging CV. How has she squeezed more into half a decade than most people manage in a whole career? “I get up really early,” Melanie deadpans. She’s not kidding: 3.30am, most mornings.

“I’m half Swiss and half Kiwi,” she explains, “so have my Dad’s vivacious Kiwi-ness on one side, and my Mum’s very diligent and time driven OCDness on the other side. It’s a handy combination!” And some. Melanie’s latest venture bears all the hallmarks of her customary ambition: fully renovating one of Brixton’s most popular buildings in just seven and a half weeks. Discovering the building’s 115-year history had a huge impact on Melanie, and her vision for the restaurant as a whole.

“This building is old, man!” she laughs. “Construction started here in 1880, before it became a commercial laundry run by the Newland family from 1904 to 2014. It’s kind of scary, taking on someone else’s legacy. But when I walked in, I knew there was a provenance that I loved about this building. For me, it’s about being a custodian in time, maintaining its spirit with nuances that incorporate the Victorian and Edwardian eras.”

That means warm belle epoque interiors, vintageinspired typeface on menus and a shared-plates dining style inspired by King Edward VII - yep - and his fondness for salubrious meals involving multiple dishes. Melanie credits her own roots for the welcoming, pull-up-a-chair atmosphere that defines her budding empire. “Growing up, you’d look every person in the eye, even if they were a stranger, and say: ‘good morning.’ It just comes naturally to Kiwis, trying to communicate and engage with people. For me, that’s why restaurants exist.”

Mel’s passion for her homeland is infectious, and clearly paramount. Her career to date has revolved around a simple mission: banging the drum for new world winemakers. “I knew I had to create a platform where people could learn about New Zealand and buy wine outside of the supermarket,” she says simply. “That’s how you support people who are actually working tirelessly in the vineyards.” That sense of power within a community made south London a natural home for Melanie’s businesses. “The Pop Brixton community vibe pulled me in initially,” she recalls. “Being a part of a concept that drove small business growth and opportunities for the local community resonated really firmly for me, and I still love being part of it. We try to use as many local shops and providers that we can, and do as much as we can in terms of sourcing out staff by reaching out to local colleges for chefs.”

“There’s just an amazing, dynamically cool community in south London. I adore it,” she admits. “The people, the culture, the generations. You can get it elsewhere in London, but not like here. Not like our neighbourhood.”