A popular restaurant and cocktail bar will close its doors after struggling with the post-pandemic pressures plaguing the hospitality industry.
The Matriarch, a French-inspired venue touted as Brisbane’s most glamorous cafe, announced on Monday it will close for the final time on Sunday.
The venue was opened in 2019 by business partners Jimmy Truong and Mathew Dewacht and survived the pandemic thanks to its popular afternoon high teas.
However, news of the closure was announced in a post on the restaurant’s social media pages, detailing how it was unable to overcome skyrocketing costs.
“The past five years have been an experience we will never forget, Covid took a lot of fighting and the current financial crisis is one fight too many,” the message said.
A popular French-inspired restaurant and bar in Brisbane, The Matriarch (pictured), has decided to close its doors on Sunday
‘It is with pain in our hearts that we have decided not to renew our lease and to close our business.
’We thank you for your continued support and wish you all the best.’
Co-owner and chef Mr Dewacht said while the business was not forced to close, the current economic landscape made staying open too difficult.
“We just made the decision: can’t we mentally fight through another Covid, another economic crisis, this is exactly the same feeling as Covid,” he told The courier post.
“The level of exhaustion, it’s not worth fighting again. [It’s better} to leave without being forced to like some other businesses who are going bankrupt.’
Mr Dewacht said a number of other business had fallen into bankruptcy because their customer bases had dried up when the economy started to tighten.
Despite navigating through the pandemic, the owners said the current economic strains plaguing the industry was too much to handle and its lease wouldn’t be renewed
Devastated customers shared their shock at the sudden closure in comments on the social media post.
‘This makes me so sad,’ one wrote, adding: ‘Thank you for such amazing service and hospitality.’
A second customer wrote: ‘You guys will certainly missed, thank you for providing an excellent experience.’
A third lamented that The Matriarch was ‘a one-off type place would be hard to beat’.
Another reminisced on their love for the venue’s high teas before asking if they were selling off their furniture.
The Matriarch is just the latest casualty of a tough trading environment for the hospitality industry in Australia. Recent closures include Gauge, in Melbourne, 13 years of business and beloved Sydney restaurant Tetsuya, after 37 years.
