Gareth Ward’s Gwen in Machynlleth – the best restaurant in Wales for the past two years, according to our annual Harden’s survey – is to close next month after three years in which it has earned the highest accolades.
Named after Gareth’s mother, the tiny venue – just three metres wide and with eight seats – is six miles from his famous flagship Ynyshir, and devotees say it is “equally inspirational but more accessible“.
Former Ynyshir head chef Corrin Harrison moved across to open Gwen in 2023, serving a 10-course tasting menu. It achieved the rare feat for a spinoff of surpassing its mothership in the Harden’s ratings, and sits at number 24 overall in the 2026 Harden’s 100 list of the UK’s best restaurants, with Ynyshir at 62.
Corrin (left in photo), who is currently representing Wales on the BBC’s Great British Menu, announced the closure via a social media post in which he paid tribute to Gareth (centre) and Gareth’s partner, Ynyshir’s creative director Amelia Eiriksson (right), for giving him the opportunity.
He said: “The time has come for me and the team at Gwen to move on to something new.
“The past three years at Gwen have been amazing. Having full creative freedom over the food, drinks, and the overall vibe of the restaurant is something I will always be grateful to Gareth and Amelia for.
“The chance to close the doors on our own terms is something rare in this industry, and something we are incredibly proud to be able to do. It feels like the right moment to end this chapter on a high and look ahead to what comes next.
“They say it takes a community to raise a child, and the same goes for a restaurant, and what a community Machynlleth is! Thank you to everyone who has supported us along the way.”
Gwen will close on Sunday 3 May following Machynlleth Comedy Festival; all bookings until then have already been snapped up.
Meanwhile, Jason Atherton is another prominent chef calling time on a restaurant, with Little Social in Mayfair serving its last meals this weekend. Following the 2024 closure of Pollen Street Social on the opposite side of the road, where Jason launched his global restaurant empire 15 years ago, this marks the end of a chapter as the chef-entrepreneur effects a reshuffle of his London holdings. In the past couple of years he has launched Three Darlings, Sael, and most impressively Row on 5 in Savile Row.
Two of London’s small cadre of floating restaurants have also closed – brasserie Marcelline at Wood Wharf in Canary Wharf, after less than two years in operation, and Caravel on the Regent’s Canal, which brothers Fin and Lorcan Spiteri quit last November after five years.