A TOP TV chef’s restaurant chain has collapsed owing more than £500,000.
Simon Rimmer’s vegetarian company Greens operated for 33 years before two locations were forced to close this year.
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TV star Simon Rimmer’s Greens restaurant chain failed this yearCredit: Instagram
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Simon opened the restaurant with business partner Simon Connolly in 1990. Credit: Instagram
Now, more than half a million pounds of unpaid debt has been left after the collapse of the Manchester-based chain.
A document filed by Begbies manager Traynor with Companies House lists the amounts the restaurant owes creditors.
HMRC is missing the bulk of the funding, with an estimated £458,873 in unpaid VAT and PAYE.
The company owes an estimated £75,000 to trade creditors, while consumer creditors, who have paid restaurant vouchers and gift cards, are short about £35,790.
Royal Bank of Scotland is also owed an estimated £13,164, according to a document reported by City AM.
Begbies said those lenders will remain unpaid because there will not be enough money recovered through the administrative process.
Simon’s first Greens restaurant opened its doors in Didsbury, Manchester in 1990, with a second opening in nearby Sale in 2022.
However, rising rents and running costs made the original restaurant “unviable” and it closed its doors in January this year.
Then in September, the Sale restaurant also closed, which marked the end of the Simon chain.
Greens was one of the first vegetarian restaurants in Manchester and the first fully vegetarian to feature in the Good Food Guide.
A restaurant chain owned by a Michelin-starred chef is on the brink of collapse 16 years after opening
After the closure, Simon described how “heartbreaking” it was to see the chain collapse.
He told the Manchester Evening News that the chain was “the cornerstone of his life” and that closing it was the most difficult decision he had to make in his business career.
At the time the restaurant collapsed, the restaurant’s management took to Facebook and released a heartbreaking statement.
It says: “We did everything we could to make this work, but now it’s clear that the business is unsustainable.
“We would like to thank everyone, team members and guests, who were with us on the Greens’ journey.”
Fans of the restaurant were quick to express their sadness via a Facebook post about the closure of the Sale page.
‘END OF AN ERA’
One person commented: “So sad to read this, one of our Sale favourites.”
Another said: “No. End of an era. Loved both restaurants. So sad.”
A third added: “Oh my god this is so sad, my absolute favorite restaurant of all time.”
And another wrote: “Oh no that’s so sad. We loved eating at Greens for 12 years. Definitely the end of an era.”
Simon and his business partner, actor Simon Connolly, started the much-loved restaurant more than 30 years ago.
When Greens Didsbury closed in January, Simon told fans there would be no future for the restaurant due to rising rents and energy bills.
In the video, he stated: “This is a very sad day.
“After 33 years of running the Greens in Didsbury, we have unfortunately had to close our doors.
“Our landlords increased the rent in the region of 35%, the cost of raw materials, the cost of heating, light and electricity, staffing and general food costs meant that the business unfortunately became unsustainable so we closed our doors immediately,” the chef said at the time.
He also thanked the staff who worked there together with suppliers, customers, neighbors and friends.
In May 2019, The Telegraph listed it as one of the best British restaurants for vegetarians, and in April 2023, among the 16 best in Manchester.
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Restaurant owes more than £500,000 in unpaid debt Credit: Instagram
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