Jamie Oliver has applied to turn a former stable block at his historic home into a pop-up takeaway bakery.
The celebrity chef plans to plan baked goods, sandwiches and coffee from the site at his sprawling Essex mansion seven days a week, from 9am to 5pm.
Oliver – who shot to fame as the Naked Chef – says the goods will primarily be for takeaway, but plans for the site’s transformation shows rows of indoor and outdoor tables he hopes to fill with customers.
Punters will be served from a ‘historic feeding trough’ from the estimated six employees in August 2025.
If approved, the bakery will open operate in the grounds of Spains Hall, a Grade I listed Tudor home built in around 1570. The site was previously used host weddings, before it was bought by Oliver in 2019 for £6million.
The Coach House and Stable Block originally dates from 18th Century and was first listed in 1967 when it was in use as stables.
Oliver’s representatives said: ‘This proposal represents an exciting opportunity to trial a new, small scale commercial use within the Spains Hall estate.’
It adds: ‘It is envisaged that the site will operate as a pop-up Bakery / Coffee / Sandwich shop (predominantly on a takeaway basis) for the month of August 2025 only. It is proposed to keep the facilities open 7 days a week 09:00 – 17:00.’
The celebrity chef plans to plan baked goods, sandwiches and coffee from the site at his sprawling Essex mansion seven days a week, from 9am to 5pm
Oliver – who shot to fame as the Naked Chef – says the goods will primarily be for takeaway, but plans for the site’s transformation shows rows of indoor and outdoor tables he hopes to fill with customers
The chef owns the closest residential properties around the site, the proposal notes, as it claims the temporary change of use is not ‘unacceptable’
The plans do not require any physical alterations to the site, which already has men’s, women’s and disabled toilets as well as a staffroom and a kitchen.
The chef owns the closest residential properties around the site, the proposal notes, as it claims the temporary change of use is not ‘unacceptable’.
Parts of the home and its grounds already have permission to be used as a film studio, and the property has already been the base for his TV shows – including one over lockdown, where his family acted as the crew.
The bakery will need three deliveries by HGV lorries every week to fuel the kitchen, with as many as 26 cars being able to park at the site at one time.
The application stated that customers would use the existing parking at the back of the Stable Block while an extra area would be available for an overflow if needed.
They claim they will serve just 20-50 customers a day, while the site was able to accommodate as many as 140 people as a wedding venue.
His reprensentatives stated: ‘The proposed temporary change of use offers the opportunity to trial a new small scale commercial use within a rural location which will not cause any detrimental heritage, traffic or amenity impacts.’
Oliver, via his representatives added: ‘The existing kitchen within the building will be used for food preparation.
The bakery will need three deliveries by HGV lorries every week to fuel the kitchen, with as many as 26 cars being able to park at the site at one time
The application stated that customers would use the existing parking at the back of the Stable Block while an extra area would be available for an overflow if needed
‘Public access would be restricted to the main room open plan within the building plus the toilets, both of which are on the ground floor.
‘No physical alterations are required to the building internally or externally in support of the proposals and there is no impact on any areas of soft landscaping or habitat.’
Since the Middle Ages, the house and estate in Finchingfield, Essex, has been in the ownership of just three families, and was sold to Oliver in 2019.
Oliver has previously sought permission for repair works to the property, including windows, doors, and masonry and is credited with renovating it from a state of disrepair.
Oliver bought his Essex mansion in 2019 and had building work done on the house before he moved in, including the restoration of many original features.
The manor house boasts 12 bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, a large games room, great hall, dining room, two drawing rooms and a wine storage area.
It serves as his family home, where he lives with his wife, Jools, and their five children Daisy Boo, Poppy Honey, Buddy Bear, Petal Blossom, and River Rocket.
Jamie Oliver’s Cookery School has also offered a cooking experience at Spains Hall, allowing guests to learn from his chefs and sample ingredients from his garden.
The Essex mansion serves as his family home, where he lives with his wife, Jools, and their five children
The house had only been used by three families and hadn’t been sold for 250 years when Mr Oliver bought it. The manor house boasts 12 bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, a large games room, great hall, dining room, two drawing rooms and a wine storage area.
Mr Oliver filmed 20 episodes of Jamie: Keep Cooking And Carry On at his home in 2020 as he prepared food with limited ingredients for viewers isolated by the COVID pandemic.
Original features include a well on the ground floor, a priest hole on the first floor and a two-storey red-brick Tudor gazebo in the gardens, which is named The Prayer house.
The property also has an outdoor swimming pool, tennis courts and fishing lakes.
No public comments have so far been registered and a decision on the application will be made by the council at a later date.
