A MICHELIN-starred restaurant famed for its lobster dish will close at the end of the year.
The Leeds-based Man Behind the Curtain will have its last service on December 31.
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There is some good news for fans of renowned chef Michael O’Hare as he plans to relaunch as Psycho Sandbar which is described as a “fish-heavy” restaurant with a “surf shack” feel along with a brutalist design.
A refit is planned to start in January next year.
The Man Behind the Counter was highly acclaimed, winning one Michelin star.
It gained a reputation thanks to its From Dali to Delhi dish which took its inspiration from Salvador Dali’s famous Lobster Telephone where the surrealist artist place a lobster on top of telephone.
Food critics from the renowned guide said: “If you’re looking for the unconventional, you’ve come to the right place.
“Michael O’Hare is a chef who does things his own way and his idiosyncratic basement restaurant matches his cooking style perfectly.”
O’Hare’s original 14-course tasting menu set back diners a whopping £190 each.
He changed the menu though in May this year and brought in a ‘Menu Rapide’ costing £40 for four courses, or £60 for six courses.
O’Hare made the announcement on Instagram, saying the change was down to the impact of Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis.
The chef said: “Things need to change because the world has changed, and I have changed.
“As an industry we’ve been hit by three major, major waves. Brexit is the first, the unspeakable…we had the pandemic and then the cost of living crisis.
“That’s three huge things that impact a sector in such an enormous way.”
According to a video also posted on Instagram, Psycho Sandbar will also be a fine dining restaurant but be more accessible to guests.
It will be run by the same team and company behind The Man Behind the Curtain.
Among the dishes on offer at the new restaurant will be grilled fish and pitta breads with plankton while serving up champagne and cocktails.
The current restaurant is still open and taking reservations until the end of the year.
It is also having offers on sale ahead of Christmas to help fund the new venture.
O’Hare added: “From then on in comes a new baby. Same team, same building, same set up, same company.
“These things don’t change. What changes is our offering, our name and our outlook.”
The Man Behind the Curtain first opened in its original site in 2014.
It is the only restaurant in Leeds to hold a coveted Michelin star, which it held for nine years.
O’Hare has worked at some of the world’s best restaurants, including Michelin-starred chef John Burton Race at L’Ortolan and Noma in Copenhagen.
He also worked at Judges in Yarm, before becoming head chef at The Blind Swine in York.
The cooking whizz is no stranger to TV, having appeared on the Great British Menu in 2015 – and returned to the show as a judge for the following three years.
He was back on the show in 2023, mentoring the chefs.
You may recognise Michael from his slot as a guest chef on BBC’s Saturday Kitchen in 2015.
He has also appeared on BBC’s MasterChef and Yes Chef in 2016.
The news comes just a day after an award-winning restaurant run by a Great British Menu chef is closing its doors for good.
The Chinese restaurant Lu Ban in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle first opened in 2019 under the leadership of chef Dave Critchley.
The owners of Lu Ban put the reason for its closure down to the cost of living crisis and increasing financial pressures on running the restaurant.
The news comes during a tough time for the restaurant business.
The Doncaster location of Frankie and Benny’s shut its doors last month.
Forty other branches of Frankie and Benny’s have closed over the past year after lockdown and inflation hit the chain hard.
Byron Burger also closed its restaurant in George Street, Oxford at the end of last month according to staff.
Byron collapsed back in January and announced the immediate closure of nine sites.
The move left more than 200 employees out of a job.
The hospitality sector as a whole has been struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, only to be hit with soaring energy bills and inflation.
Italian dining chain Prezzo revealed plans to shut 46 restaurants back in April as a result of soaring energy and food costs, putting 810 jobs at risk.
Plus, a family favourite restaurant chain has delayed its plans to open new restaurants following two closures.
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