Darwen restaurant announces shock closure due to cost-of-living crisis

The owners of Amalfi Lounge in Duckworth Street, Darwen, shared a heartfelt post on Facebook over the weekend thanking their loyal customers for their support throughout the business’s journey.

Amalfi Lounge will be permanently closed from Sunday, November 27 and the owners have invited their customers to come and say a final farewell to the restaurant on Saturday, November 26.

Inside Amalfi Lounge (Image: Facebook)

The post, written by Keyvan Fani and Katrina Fani, read: “Unfortunately, the current climate and the cost-of-living increasing has had an impact on us all. It's been an amazing journey and the Amalfi family have been proud to serve you with the best Italian food over the last 10 years.

“Keyvan, Katrina and all the staff at Amalfi want to thank you for all the custom over the years and will miss your faces every week in the restaurant. On a lighter note, it is not the end for Amalfi as we will continue to make our delicious meals as a takeaway service for all your pasta and pizza needs.”

In addition to the recent rise in energy bills, owner Keyvan Fani also mentioned the impact of Brexit and Covid-19 as a factor in the fall of his family’s business.

Last week, a survey from trade groups including UKHospitality and the British Beer & Pub Association found that more than a third of the UK’s hospitality sector is at risk of going under early next year, but businesses in the North West are at higher risk of being forced to give up in the face of these obstacles.

Keyvan said: “Everything’s had a knock-on effect on the business. From the price of oil to cheese and chicken almost tripling and then the increase in gas and electric, there’s just no way we could continue.

“Everything costs so much more but the thing is we can’t reflect that in our menu prices. People don’t want to be paying any more as it is to eat out because of the crisis, so some of the items on our menu like the lamb kebab, hasn’t changed but we’re actually making a loss selling that.”

The war in Ukraine has also contributed to food prices going up, and the price of food and non-alcoholic drinks rose by 16.2 per cent in the year to October, up from 14.5 per cent in September.

In March this year, MP Jake Berry visited Amalfi Lounge and spoke to Keyvan and Katrina.

Keyvan said: “When I met up with Jake Berry, it was at the beginning of this energy crisis. I asked him what councils would be doing to support local businesses because many will close if nothing changes.

“That was eight months ago and look what’s happened.”

Keyvan, who also runs The Godfather Pizza House on Duckworth Street, stressed the importance of customers supporting local businesses over larger corporations, when possible.

He said: “We don’t want to see more businesses closing. With Amalfi and our other businesses, we’ve always sourced the food locally and encourage others to do so because we need to put back into Darwen’s economy.”

Locals on Facebook have shared their sadness over the announcement and flooded the comments with supportive messages.

One regular customer wrote: “Omg I feel like crying. The best restaurant ever, many works dos, mothers days, birthdays, and family events here. So sad. Thanks for the most amazing memories.”

More than 200 people echoed the same sentiments in the comments section.

Although the restaurant has closed its doors for good, Amalfi Lounge will remain open for takeaway and the owners are encouraging customers to order direct through the website or telephone, rather than JustEat.

MP Jake Berry has been contacted for a comment.