Jamie Oliver's Australian restaurant chain collapses

Jamie's Italian Canberra closes doors

Jamie's Italian Canberra closes doors

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver took control of his Australian holdings a little over 12 months ago, buying his six Jamie's Italian restaurants from the receivers of the failed Keystone Group, but since then, Oliver's United Kingdom interests have run into trouble.

Jon Knight, CEO of Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group said: "We look forward to working with Aramark and exploring opportunities to establish fully branded retail restaurants in multi-tenanted office and retail environments managed by Aramark".

Jamie's Italian restaurants in the United Kingdom have also suffered, dropping in numbers from a peak of 42 restaurants to 25, which Jon Knight, the Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group chief executive, attributed to soaring rents and rates...

The company has taken over the management of Jamie's Italian sites in Adelaide, Brisbane, Paramatta, Perth and Sydney, and is actively seeking new locations for further openings.

Last body of Thottapilly family found
As many as 21 water searchers, including two jet ski teams, two boat teams and many kayak teams, were looking through the waters. They were reported missing on April 8 when they failed to show up for a visit to their relatives' place in San Jose .

'Furious' Channel Seven presenters rip into Commonwealth Games closing ceremony
The move left Seven commentators Basil Zempilas and Johanna Griggs defending the station from accusations that it was to blame. Many athletes were seen leaving the stadium while the closing speeches were still in progress.

Pentagon denies United States attacked Syrian air base outside Homs
Asked about the missile attack, an Israeli military spokesman said, "We don't comment on such reports". "Syrian air defense shot down missiles that entered its airspace over Homs", said the report.

The news comes hard on the heels of revelations of the Naked Chef's financial struggle in the United Kingdom, with Oliver's business reportedly restructuring to solve debts of £71.5 million ($132 million), and reports that Oliver had been pleading with landlords for rent cuts.

In March, the chief executive of the United Kingdom business said the company had struggled because it had "rested on its laurels" as more quick service retail businesses entered the British market.

The chef's Jamie's Italian site in Canberra has shut its doors after it was sold alongside the remaining five restaurants to Brisbane-based Hallmark.

"We'll be working closely with Jamie and the United Kingdom team, staff and local suppliers to keep driving the business forward and delivering exceptional experiences across the country", a statement by Hallmark said.

Recommended News

We are pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news.
Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper.
Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.