Aiden Byrne closes Restaurant MCR
Manchester Evening News reports that Byrne confirmed the closure yesterday (8 January), saying he was 'mortified', but that the two-month rolling lease had made it too 'precarious' to invest in the Spinningfields site.
Byrne previously oversaw the restaurant, when it was known as Manchester House, from its launch in 2013 to 2017, when he left to become chef director at D&D London’s 20 Stories restaurant, also in Manchester.
Manchester House subsequently collapsed into administration in October 2018, with its then-owner Living Ventures blaming a period of 'difficult trading'.
Having stepped down from his role at 20 Stories, Byrne managed to acquire the Manchester House site with the help of investors soon after, and relaunched it as Restaurant MCR in December 2018.
Speaking of the closure, Byrne told Manchester Evening News that he had tried his hardest to make it work, but it wasn't meant to be.
"We've known it's been a bit precarious all along and we've been going with the flow," he said.
"But it needs investment and we can't invest in it because the notice period could be now or in two years' time.
"We decided that we couldn't continue and go forward and spend more money for the inevitable to happen."
Byrne is reportedly already planning to open another restaurant in the city, with a new site already on the cards.
Byrne, who also operates a gastropub in Lymm, Cheshire, had been set to open his first restaurant in his home city of Liverpool last year, having acquired a site previously owned by footballer Steven Gerrard and restaurateur Paul Adams.
However, those plans fell through mere weeks after they were first announced due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’.
