CityLife

Marmalade forced to shut

OUT OF BUSINESS: Marmalade

AN award-winning Manchester restaurant has closed its doors.

Marmalade, in Chorlton, opened to great fanfare and scooped City Life’s newcomer of the year award in 2005.

But boss John Quilter said the credit crunch, high rent and three robberies have forced it to shut.
 
But in recent times the Beech Road eaterie has fallen foul to a crime wave boss John Quilter believes is sweeping the area.

He says three recent robberies are to blame for the closure, along with high rent fees and the credit crunch.

Mr Quilter says The 36-year-old revealed the decision to close was ‘absolutely heartbreaking’. He says he will lose his home, his car and go bankrupt.

The 36-year-old, John, 36, who employed 15 staff, said: “It’s just devastating. I’m gutted. Things were going well and I was proud of our achievements. The CityLife award was great and we were mentioned in the Michelin Guide.

“But the robberies were the beginning of the end. Perhaps it was my fault, perhaps after the first I should have made us more secure but I just couldn’t afford it. Then we had the second one when they came in with guns and I had to.

“It is threefold. The credit crunch hasn’t helped and neither has the rent.”

The restaurant was seen as a British alternative to the French brasserie with the ingredients locally sourced wherever possible.

“We tried to make sure we used local products and preserved the English tradition,” said Mr Quilter, who also paid tribute to his staff and suppliers.

“They’ve all been brilliant,” he said. “I feel so sorry for my staff because their futures are unclear and I have to take some responsibility for that. There are suppliers who I owe thousands to and they’ve all said they’ll keep in touch.

“I suppose I could close and then reopen with a new name but I’m not going to do that.”

Mr Quilter says he will now head to North Wales while he figures out what to do next.

“I’m hoping I’ll be back at some point but at the moment I just want to go surfing.”