Jamie Oliver is considering selling his Barbecoa steakhouses, his company has confirmed. The celebrity chef launched the business with his friend Adam Perry Lang in 2011, before opening his second London restaurant at the beginning of 2017, which he told HELLO! had been a "massive labour of love".
A statement from Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group said: "We have instructed a firm of real estate experts to ascertain the potential value and market suitability of our two sites." If the 43-year-old does sell the restaurants, 160 jobs could be affected, according to The Telegraph.
Jamie Oliver is in talks to sell his Barbecoa restaurants
The move comes just weeks after Jamie's company announced that it was closing 12 of its 37 Jamie's Italian restaurants, after developing debts of £71.5million. However, £47million of the debts are covered by loans from HSBC Bank and the chef's other companies.
MORE: Jamie Oliver talks to HELLO! at his Barbecoa restaurant launch
Jamie opened his second Barbecoa restaurant in London at the beginning of 2017. He told HELLO! that the steakhouse's launch was particularly exciting for him, as it had taken years of hard work and research before he felt it was ready to be opened to the public. "It's taken four years, so it's been a massive labour of love," he revealed. As for his overall success, he remains modest. "It's not about me physically," he said before adding that he tries to have "more of a culture" with his teams when it comes to their "approach and energy". He added: "I think it works. I'm proud of what we've done in ten years."
The celebrity chef is closing 12 Jamie's Italian restaurants
Barbecoa and Jamie's Italian are not the only chain restaurants to see a fall in customer numbers over the past couple of years; Italian restaurant chain Strada is set to close a third of its restaurants, while burger chain Byron could close up to 20 restaurants across the UK as part of a restructuring process.
GALLERY: How to recreate Joos and Jamie Oliver's incredible home