An iconic Italian restaurant chain has shut all its London branches after its parent company entered administration. Spaghetti House has closed its five remaining sites across the capital - in Marble Arch, Carnaby, Oxford Street, Kensington and Soho - and made all 101 employees redundant.
Rising Costs Blamed for Closure
The management has blamed rising expenses and "difficult" trading circumstances amid "global instability." Lavval Restaurants, the group running Spaghetti House, appointed corporate finance specialist BTG as administrators on May 6 to help wind down operations.
It is understood that Spaghetti House had already closed three premises in Mayfair, Goodge Street and Fitzrovia in recent months. The chain was founded by Simone Lavarini in 1955 and remained family-owned.
Historic Knightsbridge Incident
Its Knightsbridge site made headlines in 1975 when three robbers held the restaurant's staff hostage following a bungled robbery.
Luigi Lavarini, executive chairman and chief executive of Lavval Restaurants, said: "After 70 years of serving our loyal customers, it is with a heavy heart that we announce Lavval Restaurants Limited has entered administration and will cease trading."
He continued: "Years of increasing costs from the pandemic, Brexit, Government budgets and global instability have created difficult market conditions for hospitality. Balancing these costs with reduced demand and spending from customers as they navigate the rising cost of living has proven too challenging. Despite best efforts and seeking professional advice, we have had to make this difficult but necessary decision to wind down our business."
Asher Miller, partner at BTG, commented: "After a number of years of challenging market conditions worsened by soaring operational, employment, energy and tax costs affecting the hospitality industry, the directors of Lavval Restaurants approached BTG for advice on their available options. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the directors made the difficult decision to enter administration and appoint us to manage the controlled wind down of the business."
Broader Hospitality Woes
This follows as Franco Manca is reportedly closing nine London restaurants in a major money-saving restructure. The sourdough pizza chain previously announced it would shutter 16 of its 70+ locations across the UK, putting more than 200 jobs at risk. Franco Manca is now set to shutter approximately 16 sites - most notably its historic Brixton branch. The brand's roots are deep in Brixton Market Row, where founders Giuseppe Mascoli and Bridget Hugo took over "Franco's" (a local staple since 1986) to launch their sourdough concept. Though the pizzeria recently upgraded its local presence in early 2024 - moving from the original market stall to a more prominent site on the corner of Atlantic Road and Electric Lane - the expansion was short-lived.
The decision by parent group The Fulham Shore, which also operates The Real Greek brand, has been attributed to "disproportionately high" taxes and a lack of business rates relief for the hospitality industry. Bosses have now agreed to launch a Company Voluntary Arrangement process in a bid to save the strained company.
