London's Naked Pop-up Restaurant is Moving to Paris

The pop-up restaurant that launched in London this summer inviting diners to disrobe and eat in the buff is set to close up early and head across the Channel to Paris.

In an interview with Country & Town House, founder Seb Lyall said he's decided to close up shop a month ahead of schedule in order to begin preparations for the move to France.

Called The Bunyadi, the pop-up opened in late May and made headlines around the world, attracting more than 46,000 people to their wait list.

Lyall said the decision to uproot ahead of schedule and move to Paris comes following high interest from the French, as well as an unusually hot summer in London that posed problematics for the air conditioning-less venue.

Like the original concept, the Paris pop-up will center on a back-to-basics, naturalist ethos: Cell phones are banned and the menu is organic, prepared without the use of electricity or gas.

Decor is likewise au naturel, with bamboo, wicker and wood furnishings. Diners tuck into raw dishes like pickled rhubarb-infused steak tartare and feta watermelon sorbet in candlelight. The restaurant offers both a vegan and non-vegan option.

‘Bunyadi' is a Hindi word meaning “fundamental,” “base” and “natural.”

The Paris outpost will feature a different menu, but preserve the overall “Pangea-like” atmosphere.

In the interview, Lyall said his team is currently scouting three possible locations for the Paris pop-up.

‘It's really positive and I'm excited to be going to Paris,” he told Country & Town House.

“We'll be taking our team there and finding a venue...People came over from Paris, people in the industry, and said, ‘we'd love you to open over here.'”

The move to Paris, however, doesn't spell the end for Londoners. Lyall revealed a larger vision for Bunyadi that includes the launch of the city's first naked private members' club, where

naturists in London can get naked with like-minded folks.

Lyall is the brainchild behind the owl bar and “Breaking Bad”-themed cocktail bar which likewise generated widespread interest.

The Bunyadi will serve their final London meals this weekend. Lyall hopes to open the Paris outpost in September for a two-month run.