A group of Lebanese restaurants first founded in 1981 has fallen into administration.
Maroush has been a fixture of London’s Middle Eastern cultural scene since it first opened its doors four decades ago.
However a notice on the London Gazette confirmed the group had called in administrators, amid challenging times for the hospitality sector.
The owners have insisted the group will continue to operate as normal despite the notice.
Maroush was founded by couple Marouf and Houda Abouzaki who came to the capital following the Lebanese civil war.
Their first restaurant was on Edgware Road, which at its peak served up to 150 diners. The group has since expanded to locations in Kensington, St John’s Wood and Earls Court.
How the business has more recently experienced tougher times, with company accounts showing a loss of £5,131,570 for the financial year ending 2024.
In a statement to Arab News, Maroush said it was ‘focussed on making sure we can keep serving you for many years to come’.
It comes as the restaurant sector faces some of its toughest conditions to date, with several big names having left London’s streets so far this year.
Among factors cited by the industry include high employment costs, worsened by the increase to employers’ NI contributions, as well as changes to consumer behaviour and rising bills for energy and ingredients exacerbated by conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Restaurants were also dealt a blow earlier this year when the 40 per cent business rates relief introduced during the Covid pandemic finally lapsed at the end of March.