Rick Stein cafe closes in Cornwall as restaurant empire faces losses

The Rick Stein Café in Padstow, Cornwall, has permanently closed, the Rick Stein Group confirmed on Wednesday, as the chef’s restaurant empire contends with mounting losses and softer demand. The cafe, long a fixture at the heart of Padstow, announced the closure after weeks of review. Three staff members were redeployed within the business, and the group stressed that the Michelin Bib Gourmand Café remains open, serving the same coffee from Origin Coffee alongside a lunch and dinner menu inspired by Stein’s travels and commitment to fresh, local ingredients. The cafe’s closure underscores the broader pressure on a portfolio that includes restaurants, hotels, shops, a cookery school and an online business.

The development comes as the group reports a tough year for its hospitality arm. In 2024, revenues at Rick Stein’s restaurant group declined across multiple sites, with The Seafood Restaurant in Padstow recording a decline in pre-tax profits from £204,000 to £459,000 as revenues slipped by about £1.3 million to £18.9 million. Including sales from Steins Trading, total revenues across the restaurant business fell 5.4% to around £30.4 million. The boxed-in nature of Cornwall’s tourism economy and broader consumer weakness contributed to those results, the group indicated, prompting outreach to policymakers about the pressures facing employers.

In parallel with the Padstow closure, the group said it is in consultation over the potential shutdown of its Marlborough restaurant in Wiltshire. A spokesman for Rick Stein Marlborough said the site will be discussed with staff to determine whether the restaurant might be closed, noting that other outlets and rooms within the portfolio continue to trade well, but that particular site has not delivered the same level of return. The Marlborough site has long been part of Stein’s expanding footprint, but the group signaled that all options remain under review as it refines its portfolio to focus on operations that meet returns for investors and staff alike.

Padstow’s status as a culinary and tourist hub is well established. The town has been nicknamed “Padstein” due to Stein’s extensive footprint there, with a mix of businesses, gift shops and book stores carrying his brand. The community, which numbers about 2,500 residents most of the year, sees population swell in the summer as tourists and second-home owners arrive. Locals have described Stein’s influence as both a boon and a constraint: while his presence has driven visitor numbers and economic activity, it has also been linked to rising prices and concerns about the impact on independent retailers. The town’s fame has even drawn regional attention beyond Cornwall, complicating the economic landscape for smaller operators in the area.

The financial pressures on Stein’s businesses have played out alongside tax and policy developments affecting the hospitality sector. Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Autumn Budget proposals drew backlash from industry groups, who warned that changes to National Insurance contributions would intensify pressures on employers as consumer spending cooled amid a weak economy. From April 2025, NICs for employers rise from 13.8% to 15%, and the threshold at which NICs are paid drops from £9,100 to £5,000 per year. Analysts and operators alike noted that the higher tax burden comes as hospitality jobs have been shedding workers in the current climate, with industry data indicating tens of thousands of roles lost since the policy announcements.

Such developments have fed into a broader narrative about consolidation in the hospitality sector. Some observers have pointed to Stein’s expanding footprint in Padstow as a symbol of the tensions between growth and local affordability, while others highlighted the risks to a single-portfolio approach in volatile consumer markets. In this environment, the group’s leadership has emphasized ongoing efforts to maintain core operations and invest in sites with stronger potential returns, even as it reassesses the geographic spread of its brand.

Beyond the business metrics, the brand’s notoriety has occasionally drawn controversy and debate. In Padstow, Stein’s influence has been described in varied terms by locals and visitors alike, with some praising the town’s revival of interest in seafood dining and local sourcing, while others argue that the concentration of Stein-branded venues has altered the town’s character and price dynamics. The discussion has reflected broader tensions within tourism-dependent communities that grapple with growth, affordability and the long-term sustainability of local businesses.

As the Rick Stein Group navigates these challenges, the focus for investors and staff remains on stabilizing cash flow, preserving employment where possible, and determining whether further closures are necessary across its portfolio. The industry-wide context remains difficult: job losses in hospitality, evolving consumer patterns, and policy shifts continue to shape the outlook for eateries and related ventures. For Padstow and the surrounding region, the latest developments mark a notable milestone in a long-running story about the balance between culinary branding, local economic vitality, and the realities of operating in a highly competitive, tourism-driven market.