Brasserie Blanc and Juniper blow

February 04, 2009

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Raymond Blanc at the Brasserie's launch

Raymond Blanc at the Brasserie's launch 1/3 Play Slideshow

ONE of Greater Manchester's premier restaurants is to close and a shadow hangs over another in a double blow to the region's high-class eating scene.

Chef Raymond Blanc has closed the doors of his Manchester brasserie.

Brasserie Blanc, tucked away on a back street off Chapel Walks in the city centre, ceased trading at the end of business on Tuesday.

And Juniper in Altrincham, which was due to re-open on Tuesday after a short winter break, has remained closed while 'issues' are resolved.

Staff at Brasserie Blanc told customers that the current financial situation was responsible. But while Blanc cited his own poor choice of location and the credit crunch for the end of his Manchester venture, he said high city centre rents made the brasserie's success an uphill struggle from day one.

He said: "Of course, I am upset about the closure - I do not like to lose," Blanc said in an exclusive interview with the M.E.N.

"It is my fault that we chose the wrong location in the city. But the council in Manchester really needs to look at the level of the rents that are being charged in the city centre and do something about it.

"They are very, very high and, in many cases, not negotiable. I am not the first casualty in Manchester and there will be others too."

Struggling

Blanc, who presented the BBC reality show The Restaurant, added: "I cannot believe that Manchester, the second biggest city in England, can't sustain a quality restaurant.

"All the great European cities are judged on their cuisine and restaurants as much as any other part of their culture and if you look at Manchester's record of culinary achievements, it is appalling.

"Manchester deserves better and the city council needs to do something about it if they want a truly European dimension to the city.

"We had a good first eight months but after that it was very hard indeed and, in the end, we were struggling to make any money."

The council's city centre spokesman Pat Karney said: "It is really sad to see Raymond and Brasserie Blanc go because he made a big impact in the city.

"But I am happy to meet with him and talk about any of the problems he had. Maybe it was the wrong choice of location for the restaurant but the council will certainly listen to what he has got to say."

The closure of Brasserie Blanc comes after Lancashire chef Paul Heathcote, who worked under Blanc for six years at his Oxfordshire restaurant, closed his Simply Heathcotes restaurant last March.

Mothballed

He has also mothballed plans to replace it with fine-dining restaurant The Elliott as the credit crunch continues to bite.

Last month Greater Manchester lost its only Michelin star. Juniper in Altrincham had held the accolade but was stripped of the star following the departure of chef Paul Kitching.

Juniper was due to re-open on Tuesday after a short winter break but a spokesman said it would remain closed while chef Michael Riemenschneider and his business partner Bill Treloar try to resolve 'issues' relating to the companies behind Juniper and another restaurant in Cornwall.

The spokesman added; "While a resolution is being sought both restaurants will remain closed. As discussions are ongoing it is not possible to release further information at this time nor respond to speculation regarding the future of the restaurants.

"It is hoped that more detailed information may be released shortly."

Blanc, who turns 60 this year, opened his Manchester brasserie - originally called Le Petit Blanc - in November 2000.

In June 2003 it became part of the Loch Fyne Restaurant Group, though Blanc maintained shares in the company and retained a big say over menu and the day-to-day running and promotion of the various restaurants involved in the buy-out.

He made his name in Britain when he established Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons, a hotel-restaurant in Great Milton, Oxfordshire.

The restaurant has two Michelin stars and scores 8/10 in the renowned Good Food Guide. Fellow professional chefs recognised his outstanding contribution and commitment to British cuisine by voting him 'Most respected person in the industry' in a lifestyle survey conducted by industry bible Caterer & Hotelkeeper in December 1999.

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Ron, Gorton (04/02/2009 at 11:01)

It was in a tucked away location but eants there are crazy. A mate of mine had a business on Cross Street and the landlords (a well known insurer) increased his rent four fold a few years ago. He moved to other premises and the one's owned by the insurer was left empty for 18 months. Greed.

In Manchester all the swanky places come and go i.e. Reform, Brasserie St Pierre, Sugar Lounge etc whilst the places that aren't 'in' are always packed i.e Sawyers Arms, Hogs Head, City Road Inn, Britons Protection.

As for restaurants the stalwarts are Bella Pasta, Pizza Hut etc. Manchester is unable to sustain a higher end retaurant.

andanotherthing, Mcr (04/02/2009 at 11:45)

yes rent and rates are responsible for the lack of choice in the city center. An independant stands almost no chance.

Jay B, oldham (04/02/2009 at 11:54)

location was the key thing here! i know my way around manchester quite well but i never even knew this place existed till i passed it on my way to the ice rink at xmas.

Pushkin (04/02/2009 at 12:05)

Manchester is just a franchised city. Most of the restaurants are owned by a handful of chains serving homogenised food. Little of it is actually 'cooked', merely reheated from the packet in which the franchise supplied it.

There are sadly very few privately-owned restaurants serving individually sourced and cooked food.

There's a place for franchises, but unfortunately in Manchester there's little alternative.

citycentre, manchester (04/02/2009 at 12:22)

pushkin

there are still some that, i think, are independent; like the market, TNQ, modern, grinch and more; but they need our support

Nick Rudd (04/02/2009 at 13:00)

How sad. We had some excellent meals there. Thanks, Raymond.

MPs gravy train, UK (04/02/2009 at 13:33)

Another sad loss. But not unexpected. I went past Blancs two weeks ago and it was empty. I liked the Establishment but that failed to survive. In the end it was in the wrong place and lets face it, most people with money live nowhere near the City. They go home to Wilmslow, Hale or Alderly Edge. The City Centre dwellings that have been built are now full of foreign students as owner occupers move out. We like to think we are a cosmopolitan city with affluent residents, but we are kidding ourselves.

Perhaps Mr Karney can turn it into another Co-operative food store - just so long as he makes sure he wins his battle against Tesco.

andanotherthing, Mcr (04/02/2009 at 13:44)

Citycentre

the Market for my money is the best food in Manchester. Long may it thrive.

Andy ex-Stockport, Piccadilly station (04/02/2009 at 13:56)

Never mind all you gastronomic bon viveurs and fans of haute cuisine, there's always the chippy opposite Piccadilly Bus station. As my mate Dave from Salford says: La poission et les pommes frites la, ils sont les genoux des abeilles, vraiement!

michael mcgookin (04/02/2009 at 14:29)

Manchester is not London. We lack the cosmopolitan culture and while you can have a good night out and most people are great, people can't or won't spend too much money. I suppose the fact that many city center eating venues seem to try to rip you off with high prices and poor cuisine puts people off. At the end of the day Manchester is a reasonably small northern city and can't compete with London. You can't beat a good country pub, but even the Dun Cow out in Cheshire changed into a wine bar.

JJ night driver, somewhere in manchester (04/02/2009 at 14:43)

And Richard Leese said that the con charge would help businesses! With rates and parking costs already at sky high prices, it's no surprise that Blanc's had to shut shop! There will be many more too! A night out in Manchester is becoming too expensive for normal working class people!

Giles, Voice of City Fans (04/02/2009 at 14:56)

I often used to go out in town to eat and then realised one day that most places are very much the same. We became obsessed with the brasserie type place but the food was overpriced and dull. The menus were the same in every place, I could predict the menu.

You would struggle to get a decent restaurant around Manchester. Possibly the French at the Midland, posssibly Harvey Nicks and then you would have to go to Winteringham Fields to get anywhere else even almost close. In London it's great as you have Petrus, Tamarind, Mirabelle, The Square etc but we are lacking in the North West.

We do have some talented chefs but they are constrained by what they owners think the public wants, which more often than not is wrong. I had a chef come cook for a dinner party I had on Saturday night and he was excellent yet was out of work due to his place failing too.

I've enoticed in one or two places in Manchester that shall remain nameless that they are now cutting back on portion size.

In LA where I spend most of my time the choice is excellent and the service great. In England the meal is often ruined by the staff as they either think themselves too cool or are just plain rude.

I was once sat on a table next to that of Michael Winner and he was trying, without success, to gain the waiter's attention (who was too busy talking to two other waiters) so Michael swirled his napkin above his head shouting 'waitier'. This is a tip that I picked upon and I now do it yet one establishment on Deansgate threatened to throw me out (despite me having a 32% stake in the holding company I should add).

No surprise with these closures and we will see more.

Giles, Voice of City Fans (04/02/2009 at 15:08)

Good point JJ. With a world class transport infrastructure people would be travelling by bus and metrolink in the finest to grace these restaurants. They would be so successful that they would be having extensions built on them to cope with the numbers.

michael mcgookin (04/02/2009 at 15:29)

Giles, I really hope you told that waiter you had a big stake in the holding company. I once got asked to leave pizzaland in Altrincham because I said my coffee was cold. Obviously they didn't want riffraff like me.

Matt F, manchester (04/02/2009 at 15:42)

I once ate at a so called swanky restaurant for lunch, by tea time I was sat in "this and that". stuffed my face for a fiver and it was packed to the rafters....... say no more

Blue Firework, in the Arabian Bank Vault (04/02/2009 at 15:59)

Giles, put a napkin in it.

Giles, Voice of City Fans (04/02/2009 at 16:03)

Unfortunately I didn't. However the name was noted and the person dealt with appropriately.

Upon reading yesterday that Chinatown was in decline I recalled to somebody yesterday that I was in a restaurant there once and complained that my meat disch contained very little meat, but plenty of gristle. The manager came over and put his fingers in the dish poking it around and produced a piece of meat. Unbelievable! I told him that I would be leaving as I was duly escorted out by two heavies. The place went out of business a few weeks later.

The Truth (04/02/2009 at 16:09)

A shame but apart from rents the issue is that most with half a crown disposable live in a radius 8 miles south of the City and therefore it just isn't "convenient" to make the journey. Manchester's one major problem (apart from sun and beach) is always the lack of real money living close to the City Centre.

Jomov (04/02/2009 at 16:18)

People aren't stupid and do not like to feel ripped off. There are many good restaurants out there but also some bad ones. As long as the food is good and priced correctly there shouldn't be a problem...

B.Dylan, Manchester (04/02/2009 at 17:20)

Hey forget these upmarket joints if you are looking for casual eating which we are 90% of the time. What about all you can eat buffet in China Town delicous!!! a tenner each plus a beer or free green tea if you fancy check out the No1 Oriental Buffet next to McDonalds!

PW, Manchester (04/02/2009 at 17:42)

We were sitting in what is quite an expensive pub to eat, near to Deansgate, and spent most of our half hour swatting midges that were everywhere as people were eating. We were asked to leave by the barman, as we were obviously killing all his midges and drawing attention to them. I've never been back to this 'meat on the bone' house.

Knowall, stretford end (04/02/2009 at 17:49)

these desinger restuarants make me laugh, they charge the earth and provide a very small meal on a large plate, where a boarding plank is needed to get from the edge of the plate to the food. if they charged a resonable price for their fare i would visit but until they do this they are doomed. These restuarants in London charge the earth and get away with it because I believe a lot of poeple in the capital are very pretentious and stupid and most likely go home starving but they have been "SEEN".

allotment lad 2, Sunny Manc (04/02/2009 at 23:22)

This has been on the cards for months...they announced they were looking to move to Cheshire last year I think. Business would be better if the city centre was a more family friendly place in the evenings, where the alcoholic desires of the 18-30 brigade wasn't the priority. There are shed loads of retired people with cash out there but they don't come into the city centre. If a few of the 'vertical drinking' establishments went and some the many cafes opened after 7pm the balance might start to change.

Lambo (27/04/2009 at 21:18)

Had a fair to good meal there a few years ago but the service was dreadful. When we complained we were told it was our fault for being 10 minutes late (all 12 of us were at the bar in the restaurant at the time)Infuriated we paid the bill but we point blank refused to pay the "discretionary" service charge...all hell broke loose! Never been back.

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