Rick Stein's Malborough, Portheleven restaurants permanently closed

Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox

Deputy Editor

Two restaurants in Rick Stein's restaurant group won't be reopening after lockdown measures are lifted - One will be the celebrity chef's restaurant in Wiltshire, and the other in Cornwall's Portheleven.

Rick and Jill Stein shared the news on their Instagram page, expressing deep sorrow and thanking customers for their support.

View this post on Instagram

We are very sad to announce that our restaurants in Marlborough and Porthleven will not be reopening. We would like to thank all our customers who have supported us there over the years. We hope you will find your way to our other restaurants where perhaps we can share fond memories of nights overlooking the romantic harbour at Porthleven or the classic perfection of the High Street in Marlborough.

A post shared by Rick Stein & Jill Stein (@ricksteinrestaurants) on Jun 21, 2020 at 6:49am PDT

Many closures have been announced in recent weeks, on the eve of the government's all clear for restaurants to reopen, expected on July 4th.

Among them, The Ledbury, Sardine, The Seafood Pub Company, and Le Caprice, with many more expected to follow.

Others have announced their reopening date, including D&D, Moor Hall, The Raby Hunt, and Michelin-starred Bohemia in Jersey - which opened on Friday.

However uncertainty as to what the guidelines might be for restaurants to reopen safely has left many unsure as to whether it will be viable for them to reopen.

Crucially, the matter of whether physical distancing will be set at two metres or one, could mean the difference between opening at 30% capacity and 75% capacity.

At the beginning of lockdown, Rick Stein's restaurant group was embroiled in a bitter debate, prompted by an article alleging that it wouldn't be paying its staff until insurance payments came through and furlough money was cashed in from the government.

In an interview with The Staff Canteen, Rick Stein's son, Jack Stein, kicked back at the allegations, which he called "misleading" and "unacceptable" given that, as he put it "the whole industry is in the weeds."

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