Michelin chef Paul Welburn to leave Oxfordshire restaurant

Paul Welburn launched the Cygnet restaurant at the Swan Inn in Islip back in December 2022 with Nina Gray and Nicole Patrick, the directors of Migg Inns.

In the years following it has since earned three AA rosettes and has been named in the Michelin Guide.

Mr Welburn had previously been based at the Oxford Kitchen in Summertown where the chef retained a Michelin star for a total of five years.

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Paul Welburn. (Image: Paul Welburn / X)

He will stay at the village restaurant until February 2025 before moving on to a new venture in Cornwall.

“What a three years at the Cygnet, achieved so much,” he said in a public statement. 

“Four months left cooking at the Swan then Cornwall bound and I look forward to finding the next venture.”

Adding to this, in a chat with Ox in a Box, the chef said: “I’ve sacrificed so much for my career. It’s been my whole life, but the most important people now are my family.

“I’ll leave at the end of February and will give the Swan my all until then.”

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The Swan Inn. (Image: Michelin Guide)

Mr Welburn is originally from Scarborough in North Yorkshire and grew up there, harbouring his passion for creating food.

“Food was always a social time with my family, being around the table, having a good meal – that sociable, enjoyable moment,” he previously said.

“That’s where my passion for being a chef started. I would cook meals for people (probably not a high standard in any way), but I enjoyed seeing their reaction.”

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