One of Glasgow’s best-loved restaurants has closed with 'immediate effect' after almost 22 years in the city centre.
Last night, the team at Brian Maule at Le Chardon d’Or on West Regent Street served their last customers and released a statement explaining that financial burdens as a result of the pandemic and cost of living crisis had ‘forced their hand’ in the decision.
The statement read: “We have tried so hard to fight against the financial burden of the ‘new normal’ world we live in, but it has forced our hand - for now - with immediate effect.
“Surviving through Covid, then spiralling into a cost-of-living crisis, increased home working, plunging property values, lack of support for the Hospitality sector.
“All these damaging factors, plus many more have weighed heavily on us, we have tried so hard to see it through - for our fantastic team, whom we feel so sorry, but also for the City that we have been part of for the last 22 years, our business simply can no longer be sustained under all these pressures.”
Going on to thank their loyal customers over the decades the statement continued: “We leave behind something that has been very special, and are so thankful to all our customers, many whom we now consider friends.
“Your support will never be forgotten.
“We could never have done it without you, we are grateful for everything and once the devastation has subsided, we will take great comfort from the friendships created along the way and cherish the memories.”
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Brian Maule, who is widely regarded as one of the country's leading culinary talents, is said to be ‘devastated’ by the closure of the restaurant.
Maule was still in his teens when he left his Ayrshire home and headed for Lyon, the gastronomic centre of France, to learn his craft.
His skills and growing confidence brought him to the attention of the Roux brothers, Albert and Michel snr, whose Le Gavroche was the first British restaurant to earn three Michelin stars, in 1982.
When they appointed Maule head chef he found himself in charge of a brigade of 18 chefs.
In 2001 he came back home to open Brian Maule at Chardon d’Or.
At the time he said: "I aim eventually to offer the best food in Scotland but, as I build it up, I will stick to the principles and follow the methods that have made Le Gavroche what it is today.”
He would later take on a role as The Herald Magazine’s chef in 2018, each week offering recipes that readers could recreate in their kitchens.
Last night, the team at Le Chardon d'Or paid tribute to the chef's work over the years which has seen him recognised with numerous awards while also inspiring local children to pursue a career in the industry.
The statement said: “As you would guess, Brian is completely devastated by this. He feels so much gratitude towards his supporters and his dedicated staff and he feels he has let them down. Assurances that he has done nothing of the kind and that what has occurred has been almost completely out of his control, will take time to sink in.
“In time, the hope is that Brian, Susan and their loyal team will be able to reflect on these 22 great years for Chardon d’Or; an amazing span in which Brian won 8 fine dining awards and delivered a 10-year programme of hands-on training to children from Glasgow schools.”
To view the statement in full click here.
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The news comes just days after a celebrated Bearsden restaurant announced its closure as a result of the mounting pressures caused by the cost of living crisis.
Sharing the news on Tuesday, the team at Monadh Kitchen on New Kirk Road said: “It is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Monadh Kitchen.
"The financial burden of the world we live in has forced us to close with immediate effect. Managing through Covid to then head into a cost-of-living crisis has been the most difficult challenge for all small independent businesses.”
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