'If Simpsons Restaurant can't survive, what can?'

For more than three decades, Michelin-starred Simpsons Restaurant was where many people in Birmingham went to mark some of life's biggest moments.

Birthdays, anniversaries, engagements and career milestones were celebrated around its tables, while some of the country's most celebrated chefs built careers in its bustling kitchen.

But after 32 years at the heart of the city's dining scene, owner Andreas Antona announced on Thursday the business was suddenly closing, and the economy and growing pressures facing restaurants had forced him into the decision.

Former staff, industry figures and loyal customers have spoken of their sadness at the news, saying the closure was a "bellwether for the state of the hospitality industry".

Chef Claire Hutchings, a former winner of Masterchef: The Professionals and now owner of a restaurant in Spain, said she started her career at Simpsons as a teenager.

"It's such sad news - it's where my career began," she said. "When I started with them at 16 it was the only Michelin star restaurant in Birmingham. It's where my passion for fine dining started.

"Andreas, Luke and Adam really believed in me as a young chef. I will always be grateful for the opportunity, guidance, and standards Andreas created there."

Hutchings added: "What [he has] built over 32 years inspired so many of us in hospitality, myself included.

"As someone now running my own restaurant, I appreciate even more the passion, sacrifice, and resilience it takes to achieve what he did."

Simpsons opened in 1993 and held a Michelin star from 1999 onwards, becoming one of the city's best-known fine dining restaurants.

Restaurateur Antona announced the sudden closure in a statement posted on social media on Thursday.

He said he had put the restaurant on the market more than a year ago following ongoing health issues, but three attempted sales had fallen through.

Blogger Tom Cullen, who wrote a tribute to the restaurant on his I Choose Birmingham website, said Simpsons was "refined but never flashy" and "prestigious but never pompous".

"You can trace huge parts of Birmingham's modern culinary identity directly back to that kitchen," he said.

"The restaurant became a finishing school for some of the city's biggest hospitality names. While other restaurants chased trends, Simpsons simply carried on being Simpsons.

"If Simpsons can't survive this climate, what does that say about the state of the industry altogether?"

Simon Carlo, a food writer who runs a Birmingham blog Meat and One Veg, said the restaurant "would be missed across the city".

He added: "Birmingham owes its wonderful dining scene to Andreas and Luke at Simpsons. It is a breeding ground for talent, with the likes of Andy Waters, Glynn Purnell, Stuart Deeley, Matt Cheal, Dan Sweet and many more learning the classics in the kitchen there.

"Moreover, it has been a bastion of the city's culinary scene for decades. It holds many dear memories for me and will be missed across the city".

The closure follows other high-profile restaurant shutdowns, including Birmingham chef Glynn Purnell's Michelin-starred Purnell's, which closed in 2024.

Mark Lewis, chief executive of Hospitality Action, said Simpsons' closure was a warning sign for the wider industry.

"When a restaurant as respected and well established as Andreas Antona's Simpsons closes, it's a bellwether for the state of the UK hospitality industry," he said.

"Unless operators receive relief on VAT, business rates, and the costs of employing members of staff, more and more will find margins eroded to the point where opening the front doors to punters is unsustainable."

It comes as four of the UK's top chefs, including Tom Kerridge and Yotam Ottolenghi, called on the government to slash VAT for restaurants and pubs, with Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden acknowledging businesses had been asked to contribute more, adding: "We help them where we can".

A government spokesperson said: "We have the right economic plan - we're backing hospitality by reforming business rates, with a £4.3bn support package to limit bills rises, capping corporation tax at 25%, cutting red tape and taking action on the cost of living to boost the sector."

In a message announcing the closure, Antona, who confirmed sister venue The Cross at Kenilworth would remain open, thanked staff past and present for their hard work over the restaurant's 32-year history.

"In my 50 plus years in hospitality I have never known a more challenging economic climate for restaurants," he said. "Our many calls for reasonable government support have fallen on deaf ears."

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