Fable restaurant at the Crazy Bear hotel in Beaconsfield has closed down just a week after opening as the hotel entered administration this week for the second time in two years.
The business, which includes a sibling hotel in Stadhampton, was swiftly snapped up by the Brakspear pub group, which is expected to reopen the two venues next year.
Fable was headed by chef Peter Gray, formerly of Heston Blumenthal’s Hind’s Head in Bray, and was part of a bid by the hotel to attract a more mainstream market following the demise of its previous headline restaurant, BEAR by Carlo Scotto.
Earlier this week the two hotels were placed under the administration of accountancy firm BDO LLP, whose Kiri Holland said “challenging market conditions” and quieter than expected trading over the summer had made it impossible to secure the future of the business.
“Whilst a sales process has resulted in a successful sale of the freehold properties, unfortunately it has not been possible to preserve the hotel operations. Our immediate priority is to support employees and affected customers following the closure of the hotels.”
The two hotels employed about 130 staff, with the majority being made redundant; a small number have been retained to assist the administrators, who added that Brakspear intends to refurbishment the hotels.
