A gorgeous independent restaurant-bar in Swansea's Uplands is closing down permanently as a result of the financial damage caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Maisie's Streetfood and Bar on Uplands Crescent, well-known locally for its crepes, waffles, street food and cocktails, will close its doors for the last time on Sunday, July 24.
Owner Steve Herbert said he and his colleagues have explored all options to keep the business going, but Covid has "simply caught up with us". For more stories about Uplands, go here.
"I can confirm we are closing," he told WalesOnline. "Quite simply we just can't catch up on the damage from Covid. Our liquidators say thousands of businesses are closing down as Covid has caught up with them. We've been through all the options [but it's not sustainable]. We just can't catch up on the bills that racked up during Covid."
Read more: A long-running restaurant in Swansea's Uplands is closing for good
"We have spoken to other restaurateurs, and I'm meeting with another today, to find jobs for all our staff and we're hoping someone will take on the unit," he added.
Steve's comments come minutes after Maisie's Streetfood & Bar made a shock announcement on Facebook to confirm their closure on Tuesday morning. Staff said: "Sadly we are closing for good on Sunday 24 (July) at 4pm. This next 12 days is your last chance to enjoy our great food and cocktails. Please do call in for us to say goodbye to all our friends."
As well as the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic - which saw hundreds of other independent businesses across south Wales forced to close their doors and temporarily stop operating as Covid swept across the UK - Maisie's has also been affected by the way people dine out, Steve said.
Whilst Swansea - and in particular, Uplands - has a wide range of fantastic, independent businesses, Steve said many residents choose to support chain venues rather than independent businesses.
"We used to have The Crepe Vine [creperie restaurant in Swansea city centre which closed in 2018] and we've watched people going to chains - not for a superior product, but because they feel it's safer," he said. "And there's lots of lovely independent businesses in Uplands - but young people prefer chains."
That said, Steve is grateful for his "good, loyal clientele" who have supported Maisie's since it opened three years ago and has praised the Uplands community for its support. "Uplands is a great community. Neighbours support us and we support them. If you run out of ice, you just pop next door and they'll give you some. It's a great community," he said. You can get the biggest Swansea news stories straight to your inbox with our newsletter.
The closure announcement comes a few months after Steve and his daughter Georgia spoke out about how the Covid-19 pandemic was taking its toll on the business. In January, Steve was forced to close Maisie's for a week after every chef tested positive for Covid. At the time, he said he was desperate for the financial support promised by the Welsh Government at the end of 2021 to be made available as soon as possible and said it felt like hospitality businesses had been "thrown in the scrapheap" - you can recap our previous interview with him on this here.
The following week, Steve's daughter Georgia gave a further insight into the challenges facing the business. She said she and her team were "living day by day" and were struggling to see past the spring and fearful the business wouldn't make enough money to be viable.
Sadly, the father-and-daughter team's dreaded nightmare has come true: they simply can't undo the damage caused by Covid-19 and are having to close down the business.
Steve would like to thank his staff for being "beyond supportive" at this difficult time and said he's hoping he'll be able to relaunch Maisie's in the coming months, as a creperie and food stall in a converted horse box, based at Parc Trostre in Llanelli. Details will be announced when plans are finalised.
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