Leeds chef Liz Cottam is closing her gastrobar Emba at the end of February, in the face of “crushing costs” that have brought her a trio of closures in the past 18 months.
She launched the Scandi-style Emba less than a year ago on the back of a successful £65,000 crowdfunding campaign, taking over the site of its predecessor The Owl on the city’s Mustard Wharf. Before that, Home, her flagship tasting menu restaurant, ran for seven years until it closed down in September 2024.
Announcing the latest closure, Liz said she was “heartbroken, but sadly not surprised” given the economic situation in the hospitality industry.
“This is no longer the right time to own independent restaurants like Emba. Under the current conditions they cannot survive and the recent budget confirmed what so many of us already knew: no meaningful help is coming for hospitality.
“It’s obviously not just us. I’m watching crushing costs break some of our most renowned and brilliant restaurants and those in power simply do not listen.
“I opened Emba on the back of the heartbreaking closure of HOME because I couldn’t let go of what restaurants mean to me. The magical spaces they are that bring people together and create beautiful memories. I believe in that magic deeply. But my city, like those across the country, has changed dramatically since the pandemic and not for the better. The experience of being here and the harsh financial reality of running a business here no longer stack up.
“Behind the scenes there is very little magic for restaurant owners. There is health-destroying stress, constant worry and the hope that we’ll somehow survive the storm. The truth is that’s not possible right now. Being award winning, popular, admired and loved no longer means profitable and as an industry if we’re honest most of us have not truly been okay since Covid.
“I see chefs and restaurant owners everywhere speaking openly about the impossible conditions we’re facing yet no one seems to listen. As I move through the process of closing Emba I’m hearing the same story again and again. It’s heartbreaking to imagine what the restaurant landscape in this country will look like by the end of this year as further measures take effect, including 100 percent business rate increases and rising employment costs and the cost of every single part of running a restaurant continues to rise day after day.”
Emba is taking bookings until Sunday 1st March.
