Double whammy of Covid and recession see restaurant shut
A RESTAURANT in the heart of the city’s Cultural Quarter has closed.
Orton’s Brasserie, in Orton Square, opposite Curve and Athena, has served its final customers, the owner confirmed to the Mercury yesterday.
The restaurant was launched in August 2020 in the grade II-listed building which was formerly occupied by the Queen Victoria Arts Club, which in turn closed in October 2019.
It aimed to provide “unpretentious, flavoursome British food” - the type of food that was apparently adored by the brasserie’s namesake, Leicester playwright Joe Orton.
Orton’s Brasserie announced on its Facebook page at the end of last month that it was closing temporarily, to allow for staff training and maintenance.
The message said that it would reopen on Wednesday, June 8 – but the doors have remained closed.
According to a number of reviews, written between Wednesday, June 8 and
15 on Open Table, an online restaurant reservation service used by Orton’s, diners with bookings went along to the restaurant, only to find it shut, with no notice given.
Prior to June 8, the reviews on Open Table had been very positive, with many people awarding the restaurant five stars, with praise for the food, staff and ambience.
Orton’s also has a rating of 4.5 on Tripadvisor, with 38 of 53 reviewers saying it was excellent.
Talking about the fate of the restaurant, owner Guy Kersey said: “It is with great sorrow and regret that the owners of Orton’s Brasserie have taken the very difficult decision to close the restaurant permanently.
“When the concept of Orton’s was born and put into action, it was never envisaged that there would be a global pandemic shortly followed by the worst recession in the past 40 years.
“While the desire to be the quintessential eaterie in the city – and for a short period, this was achieved – external influences outside of the control of the owners meant that trading was just too difficult.
“Orton’s would like to thank everyone who frequented and sampled the ambiance, the extensive drinks and the incredible food it provided and to say thank you to all those who were a part of the team.
“Without them, Orton’s wouldn’t have been possible at all.”
Joe Orton, who lends his name to both the square at the centre of the Cultural Quarter and to the former restaurant, was a city playwright.
Born John Kinsley Orton in 1933, he grew up on the city’s Saffron Lane estate.
He became a figure of major standing in the theatre in the 1960s and beyond because of his dark comedies, including Entertaining Mr Sloane, Loot and What The Butler Saw. He was murdered by his lover and early-days writing partner Kenneth Halliwell in 1967, at the age of 34, in London.
Halliwell then killed himself with a drugs overdose.
TEMPORARY CLOSURE NOW PERMANENT AS OWNER SAYS TRADING JUST ‘TOO DIFFICULT’
It was never envisaged there would be a global pandemic followed by the worst recession in the past 40 years Guy Kersey