Tom Kerridge to Close his London Pub The Butcher’s Tap & Grill

The Tom Kerridge Group is to close The Butcher’s Tap in Chelsea, with the pub’s final service taking place on Sunday 1 June.

In a statement the group said that the team has “worked hard to make the concept work, but nothing is a given in the challenging climate hospitality businesses now face.”

“Increasing costs demand a match in revenue and turnover that has not materialised at the site, providing an opportunity to regroup, rethink and rebuild.”

“Tom and colleagues are hugely appreciative of guests who have created brilliant memories since opening and an incredible team, whose future remains secure within the Group in place for what’s next.”

Kerridge has previously talked of the pressures the hospitality industry faces following measures implemented by the government.

In an interview with Sky News in December 2024, he said: “In terms of support for small businesses post-Budget, I think there’s a lot of business frustration.

“The hospitality industry always feels massively under pressure anyway. But now there are a lot of back-of-house pressures. All of the costs have gone up behind the scenes.

“The problem is, it is beginning to be suffocated and strangled a little bit by those ongoing costs, with many closures already happening.

“I think in all honesty there will be a huge amount of closures. We’ve already got high-profile names and Michelin-starred restaurants that are deciding to shut their doors, because it just cannot operate at a profit.

“When that starts to happen, it does begin to filter down. It’s not just the smaller businesses that are saying it. Big-name chains or breweries are starting to push the government.”