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Chef Dylan McGrath closes two Dublin restaurants

Dylan McGrath made the announcement in a post on the social media
Dylan McGrath made the announcement in a post on the social media

The well-known chef, Dylan McGrath, has announced that he is closing two of his popular restaurants in Dublin city centre.

In a post on the social media pages of both Brasserie Sixty6 and Rustic Stone, Mr McGrath said the time had come where he and his team had decided "it's simply not sustainable."

"It’s hard to put into words what has happened to restaurants and the city centre in the last four years," he said.

He added that it is a very challenging time for stand-alone restaurant models.

"Rustic Stone and Brasserie Sixty6 have been very successful restaurants in Dublin city for a long time, but hospitality is changing and we believe our strong work ethic is better applied to new and different opportunities," the celebrity chef said.

"We will be focused on Fade Street Social and making it the best it can be," he added, in reference to his other Dublin restaurant.

Brasserie Sixty6 has been in operation for 25 years while Rustic Stone has been in business for 15 years.

"We would like to thank all of our customers over the years, our suppliers and all those who spent their happy times dining with us," Mr McGrath said.

"No doubt we will miss the restaurants, but selling on the leases and concentrating on Fade Street Social currently is what’s needed."

Last September a rescue plan devised by Azets Ireland for the company behind Brasserie Sixty6 was approved by creditors, following the withdrawal of an objection in the Circuit Court.

Azets was appointed as a process adviser to Home RBVR in 2022 under the Small Companies Administration Process (SCARP).

The company required restructuring in order to be able to continue to trade because it had amassed significant debt to creditors, including Revenue, as a result of availing of the debt warehousing scheme during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The company behind Rustic Stone also successfully emerged from the SCARP process in 2022.

The closures come a week after the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) released new figures showing that the number of restaurants, cafés and other food-led businesses forced to close since the VAT rate increase last September has reached a total of 577.

In July alone, 45 outlets alone closed their doors, the RAI said.

It added that in a recent survey, 74% of respondents said they believe they will have to close their businesses if the VAT rate on food is not reinstated to 9% in October's Budget.