Natoora Counter | Seasonal, Sustainable Produce

Natoora Counter is a revolutionary new café in Notting Hill that pushes the boundaries of the food industry. Since the very beginning Natoora have been on a mission to revolutionise the food system, enlightening and encouraging consumers to make seasonal and sustainable food purchases.

Natoora works directly with small scale growers and have built a transparent supply chain which is actively changing the way food is being farmed and supplied – which is why are huge fans.

The idea of Natoora began back in the 1990’s when founder Franco Fubini was living in New York and visiting his local grocery store. A lady asked a member of staff where she could find peaches, it was December and thick snow covered the ground – it certainly wasn’t peach season. That’s when it struck Franco that most people had no real knowledge of seasonal food or where their food was sourced from.

Now 14 years on from its inception, Natoora supplies over 1000 of the most influential restaurants in London, Paris and New York and is now more determined than ever to educate consumers on the impact of their choices.

“Natoora Counter is completely revolutionary within the industry and yet was a very natural progression for us. All the work we’ve done to our supply chain doesn’t stop at a restaurant door. Nobody else has dared to address the food system at this level, tackling so many facets simultaneously with such clarity of vision. We are determined to create a better future of food and this involves everyone, the consumer as well as the farmer. With Natoora Counter we are creating demand for flavour, seasonality and traceability and then putting everything back into the right people on the right farms, so that the system will correct itself.” says Franco Fubini on his new café.

The fifth store to open, Natoora works beyond the four seasons, the menu is also “Radically Seasonal”. While the word “seasonal” on its own may have lost its everyday meaning in the supermarket aisles, Natoora looks more closely at nature and working with the seasons at a micro level. Radically seasonality means that Natoora Counter’s menu changes daily adapting to the natural shifts in flavour that happen every day.

Dishes capture the crossover between these unique seasons, for example pairing the last of the English asparagus with peak season Piattone beans from Campania. Natoora’s menu pioneers tomato toast, showcasing perfectly ripe Cuore del Vesuvio sourced direct from Raffaele in Torre del Greco. A simply but effective pairing of flavours.

The idea behind Natoora counter is to also encourage consumers to know and understand the impact they can have on the way food is farmed and supplied. With knowledge comes responsibility. Looking beyond certifications and labels Natoora believes there are six signs of sustainability which are as follows:

Biodiversity – Promoting the presence of bacteria & fungi, grasses, trees, insects and mammals on the land. This creates a natural environment in order to encourage biodiversity through limited to no use of pesticides.

No or minimal use of chemical intervention – Transparency on use and frequency of chemical and synthetic fertilisers and pesticides etc.

Seed selection – Varieties are chosen for flavour not yield or shelf life.

Traditional growing techniques – This preserves cultural artistry of their growing region and produces varieties with unique characteristics.

Soil regeneration – No or low tillage of the land protects ecosystems against soil erosion and nutritional depletion.

Resource conservation – Use of renewable energy with close attention paid to waste production as well as recycling.

Natoora Counter is open seven days a week offering breakfast, lunch, coffee and snacks. To find out more about Natoora Counter or Natoora’s other stores visit the website here. For more information on the six signs of sustainability, or to find out more about Natoora’s mission click here.

Images, Natoora