North London cafe operator given green light for legal challenge

A High Court hearing is now set to take place for Hoxton Beach's legal challenge over being removed as operator of the Highgate Wood Cafe, the Refreshment Pavillion, and the Lido Kiosk Cafe, with a date to be confirmed.

Hoxton Beach has successfully operated the Lido Kiosk Cafe at Parliament Hill since April 2018, the Refreshment Pavilion at Queen’s Park since autumn 2018, and the Highgate Wood Cafe since May 2019.

The three cafes have a strong local reputation, with more than 25,000 people having signed a petition supporting the cafe operator, including celebrities Benedict Cumberbatch, James McAvoy and Stefan Campbell Moore.

The City of London Corporation (CLC) first announced it would be reviewing the tenders of the cafes in July 2025, and invited tenants to apply to operate the cafes.

Hoxton Beach, owned and run by Patrick Matthews and Emma Fernandez, applied to continue running the cafes in September 2025, but were informed by the council that their company's leases would not be renewed in December 2025.

In January 2026, this decision was formally communicated along with a four-week notice period to vacate, with cafe chain Daisy Green set to take over the leases.

The same month, Mr Matthews and Ms Fernandez sent a pre-action protocol letter to CLC laying out a legal claim, before submitting an application for judicial review in March 2026.

In a decision handed down in October 2026, the claim has now been given permission to proceed on four grounds, meaning it will be now heard at the High Court.

Hoxton Beach's owners say that CLC ran the tender process without meaningfully involving either the communities affected by the cafés or the consultative bodies that were supposed to have a role in the decision-making process.

Mr Matthews and Ms Fernandez also say they did not initially receive information about why their proposals had not met CLC's criteria, and they received no communication or updates throughout the tendering process until being informed via phone call that their bids were not successful.

Hoxton Beach's owners are crowdfunding to support their legal action.

Leigh Day solicitor Ellie Fawcett, who represents Hoxton Beach's owners, said:

"The Court’s decision to grant our client permission on four grounds is an important step towards ensuring their concerns about the lawfulness and fairness of the decision-making process are fully examined. The cafes have served their local communities for many years and have become a valued part of those communities. Decisions concerning their future should therefore be taken through a lawful, fair and transparent process, and we welcome the Court’s decision to examine this further at a substantive hearing."