Jean-Christophe Novelli's Les Saveurs restaurant in London appears unlikely to reopen after its usual summer break.
Peter Horton, operations manager with the Novelli group, said it was likely that Novelli would now concentrate on cooking at his restaurant in Clerkenwell, London, and not reopen Les Saveurs. The lease for the restaurant is owned by RF Hotels, and the Novelli group is now in talks with RF about Les Saveurs' future.
Horton said Les Saveurs was "a difficult site". It was reported earlier this year (Caterer, 13 May, page 5) that it had lost £150,000 since Novelli took it over two years ago.
In May this year Novelli pulled out of a deal to buy one-Michelin-starred Gordleton Mill in Hampshire (Caterer, 20 May, page 7), even though he had already installed Richard Guest as chef.
One of the two restaurants Novelli operates in Clerkenwell, Maison Novelli, is closed for refurbishment, but Horton said this would reopen in September.
Maison Novelli front of house staff were reported to have walked out of the three-AA-rosette restaurant after being unhappy with the way things were being run.
Horton agreed that people had left since his arrival, but said: "People will like me or they won't."
He added: "You know what waiters are like - they come and go, especially at this time of year - but at the moment we are fully staffed."
by Noella Pio Kivlehan