A celebrity chef’s hotel empire has collapsed after his eighth restaurant collapsed in just six weeks.
Administrators were called in to take over award-winning chef Shannon Kellam’s French restaurant Montrachet in Brisbane’s Bowen Hills on Friday.
At the end of May, Mr Kellam’s hotel business, BCN Events Group, went into voluntary liquidation, resulting in the closure of seven of its venues and the dismissal of 90 staff.
Mark Holland, Jamie Harris and Anthony Connelly of McGrathNicol have been appointed administrators of Cuisinier Australis Pty Ltd, trading as Montrachet.
The restaurant will continue to operate as normal and the managers urge any interested buyers to contact them.
Montrachet first welcomed customers in 2004 and was purchased by Mr Kellam and his wife in 2015.
“It is with great regret that I inform you that we have taken the difficult decision to place the company into administration,” it said in a statement.
‘We are very grateful for the continued support provided by our clientele, staff and suppliers over the past 20 years.’
Award-winning chef Shannon Kellam’s Montrachet restaurant in Brisbane’s Bowen Hills went into administration on Friday
It is the eighth venue under Kellam’s leadership to go into administration or liquidation since May.
Mr Kellam’s restaurant has won countless awards, including Australia’s best French restaurant on several occasions, as well as two chef’s hats.
Last month he told the Courier Mail his business insurance had more than doubled to $22,000, and gas and electricity bills had also skyrocketed.
When his company BCN Events Group went into liquidation, his venues Lumiere Culinary Studio in Newstead, Mica Brasserie in Newstead and the popular King Street Bakery in Bowen Hills all closed.
It is understood that 90 staff members across the seven locations have been made redundant.
Mr Holland, Mr Harris and Mr Connelly also handled these settlements.
“We intend to work with staff, customers and suppliers during this difficult time,” Holland said in a statement.
‘At this preliminary stage, BCN Events appears to be a victim of the headwinds facing the hotel industry.
‘In the meantime, we regret to inform that there will be a disruption to the group’s ongoing operations and the well-known Mica outlets (Newstead and CBD) and King Street Bakery will remain closed.
“We are currently conducting an urgent assessment to consider the options available.”
A separate Mica cafe is still operating at Brisbane Airport and does not appear to be involved in the closures.
BCN Events Group is known to have suffered a loss of $150,000 when flooding left its business without power in February 2022.
Montrachet (interior pictured) will not be closing and McGrathNicol’s administrators are encouraging anyone interested to consider buying it.
Mr Kellam’s other venues, including Lumiere Culinary Studio, Kneadery, Mica and King Street Bakery, have closed, although a Mica still operates at Brisbane Airport.
