Yet another eatery run by an Australian celebrity chef has folded, leaving loyal fans in the lurch.
Over the weekend, Earth Purveyors of Fine Foods – a popular Gold Coast cafe run by high-profile foodie Ant Ewart – abruptly shut up shop.
The restaurant was opened by Mr Ewart in 2017, the former head chef of Byron Bay’s Raes on Wategos and Macleay St Bistro in Sydney.
According to the Gold Coast Bulletin, ASIC documents show Mr Ewart had placed the company into voluntary liquidation.
Customers have taken to social media to express their devastation at the unexpected closure.
“So sad if the news is true … I loved this place. amazing service. fabulous coffee and great food. it was my go-to in Paradise Point,” one upset diner posted on the cafe’s Facebook page.
Steven Kugel from insolvency Experts was appointed as liquidator earlier this week.
He told news.com.au the restaurant had already ceased trading over the weekend before his appointment.
Mr Kugel said his role moving forward would be to communicate with creditors and affected employees.
“There are very few creditors with small money involved but there’s certainly a tax debt that we’re aware of,” he said.
“I understand there are some employees with perhaps…