A native restart controller restarts services in a controlled manner. The services run in a cloud computing environment comprising a plurality of computing devices executing a plurality of Kubernetes pods comprising one or more containers. An indication is received of a deployment defining a service to be implemented in the cloud computing environment, the deployment including a desired number of instances of the service. An API is instantiated that is operable to provide a first state indicative of whether restarts are to be controlled by the restart controller and a second state indicating that a restart is required. In response to receiving an indication that restarts for the cluster are to be controlled by the restart controller and that a restart is required, the instances are restarted in a sequence in accordance with restart criteria associated with the service.