Photo Credit – © Copyright Rob Farrow and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Award winning Read’s restaurant in Faversham Kent that once boasted a Michelin star for 20 years is to close for good at the end of the month after 47 years trading.
The owners of Read’s in Faversham say they have taken the decision to close with “a hint of trepidation” as “Father Time” has caught up with them.
David and Rona Pitchford launched the restaurant in Painters Forstal in 1977 before moving it to Macknade Manor, off Canterbury Road, in 2000.
During its 47-year run the restaurant won a number of awards and accolades, but none more prestigious than the Michelin star it secured in 1993 and held for 20 years.
“We have genuinely been dreading this day for some time,” the couple said.
“We have been blessed with the most wonderful and unbelievably loyal staff over the years.
“To see our current brilliant team broken up is incredibly sad. If it were not for the perils of age, we would continue for another 47 years
“It is not only our staff who have been incredibly loyal over the years but our customers too, many of whom have become friends.”
The decision to close comes more than a year after they put the site up for sale for £3 million, however they now say they will hold onto the Georgian manor house to live in.
