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London’s Dandelyan bar to close after four years

Dandelyan, Ryan Chetiyawardana’s acclaimed botany-inspired bar housed within the Mondrian Hotel, is closing its doors after four years, during which it was crowned the world’s best cocktail bar.

Announcing the decision to close the bar on InstagramChetiyawardana, also known as Mr Lyan, wrote: “It feels fitting on our 4th birthday to kill off our now-eldest venue”. 

Since opening in 2014, Dandelyan has picked up a string of accolades including twice winning the world’s best cocktail menu at the Spirited Awards (2018 and 2016). It was named the world’s best cocktail bar last year and is ranked as second best on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2017.

Chetiyawardana continued: “The idea for Dandelyan is way older than 4 – it has its roots in White Lyan and my old biology days. We were so glad it was relevant when it was around.

“It would be a disservice to these amazing people, and to what we have created together to continue when we think the landscape, and the conversation, has shifted. There’s so much I think we can do, and so much we want to challenge, discuss and create in this industry that, like with White Lyan, it makes sense to burn it down, start afresh, and rise again as something brighter, shinier and more fitting of where we’re (all) now at”.

He continued that he didn’t want to be asked what’s next, but added: “Now it’s time to pull out the real weird stuff. Here’s to keeping it weird”.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

BIG OL’ ANNOUNCEMENT 1/3 Happy Birthday Dandelyan – AND GOODBYE! It feels fitting on our 4th birthday to kill off our now-eldest venue. The idea for Dandelyan is way older than 4 – it has its roots in White Lyan (itself an old idea I had waaaay back. The echos are apt!) and my old biology days. We were so glad it was relevant when it was around. But to me, what makes this bar great is these people (and there’s more of them). And fuck am I proud of what we’ve achieved together – World’s Best Menu (twice yo!), World’s Best Bar Team (duh) and WORLD’S BEST MO FUCKING BAR +++ – but that actually misses what I think we’re great at. It would be a disservice to these amazing people, and to what we have created together to continue when we think the landscape, and the conversation, has shifted. There’s so much I think we can do, and so much we want to challenge, discuss and create in this industry that, like with White Lyan, it makes sense to burn it down, start afresh, and rise again as something brighter, shinier and more fitting of where we’re (all) now at. Happy Birthday you big green beast, it’ll be great to see you different again. And goddamn I wasn’t joking when I said we have a lot on! I really think we’re just hitting our stride, and now it’s time to pull out the real weird stuff. Here’s to keeping it weird. Don’t ask what’s next (although we are keeping the space), please sit tight, and help us usher out the bar we know so many of you love as much as us. BIG LYAN LOVE! 🙀🦁🍸✨😿🙌🤘

A post shared by Ryan Chetiyawardana/Mr Lyan 🦁 (@mrlyan) on

Chetiyawardana also noted that he would be keeping the space at the hotel.

As alluded to above, this is not the first time that the cocktail maverick has closed one of his bars.

In 2016 Chetiyawardana announced the closure of White Lyan in Hoxton, a bottled, closed-loop cocktail bar which he opened alongside co-owner Ian Griffiths in 2013.

After receiving a makeover, the venue reopened under the name ‘Super Lyan’ in White Lyan’s basement, featuring a list of curated spirits, beers, wine and cocktails on rotation that guide guests according to their taste, palates and even their moods.

Having undergone refurbishment itself, Super Lyan is set to reopen tonight and house a BlackTail NYC pop-up.

In 2017, Chetiyawardana opened a drinks-led restaurant above the Super Lyan bar, called Cub, with chef Doug McMaster zero-waste restaurant Silo based in Brighton and food scientist Arielle Johnson.

The 35-cover venue, which blurs the boundaries of food and drink by approaching them as a united entity, is only open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.

Read more:

LONDON’S DANDELYAN NAMED WORLD’S BEST COCKTAIL BAR

LONDONERS WANT MORE COCKTAILS, BUT LESS BOOZE, SAY BARTENDERS

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