"I'd need to sell 1000 coffees a week just to pay my rent," David Poirier says of his decision to close his seven-year-old Hunters Hill eatery, Le Village, on Thursday.
Poirier, a Sydney restaurant veteran who has operated restaurants everywhere from the inner west to Potts Point, says myriad costs and challenges face the local favourite, but argues the last straw is the imminent arrival of a new cafe next door.
"With the footfall for the precinct now divided between two cafes and the rent inflation, we have decided the best option would be to withdraw trading," he says.
Poirier will retreat to his Rozelle venue, Le Coq Rotisserie, which he opened in 2016 in place of his French restaurant, La Grand Bouffe.
That move was partly driven by the increased operating costs. "I only need two chefs; [La Grand Bouffe] had five to seven in the kitchen."
Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.
Sign up