Restaurant Grain to close after four years in town

Friends turned business partners, Paul Wendholt and Jordan Sidwell opened Grain in North Hill, Colchester, back in 2016.

It offers everything as a starter size so you can create your own tasting menu of as many dishes as you wish.

The restaurant was able to open after donors helped raise £10,000.

But Paul and Jordan say they have decided to close the doors in October “with a heavy heart” due to the uncertainty in the industry amid the pandemic.

In a statement they said: “After four long, hard but very rewarding years it is with a heavy heart that we have made the decision to close the doors on this chapter of grain as of October 17.

“Our lease is up for renewal with a new term of ten years, and against a backdrop of a different industry than the one we opened in for the foreseeable future we don’t feel it’s the right time to commit in the face of such uncertainty.

“To every single one of our customers, we have nothing other than sincere gratitude for your love and support since day one.

“Never more so than the last month since coming out of lockdown.

“There is no shadow of doubt that we would not have made it this far without you all.

“Until our closing week it remains business as usual, you can still book online and over the phone.

“For anyone with vouchers outstanding we’d love to see you coming in too to make use of them.

“Once again thank you to every single one of our customers, we hope to see you all one last time before we close.”

Tonight the team is due to speak with customers on Instagram in a bid to answer their questions.

Read more >>> The 11 Essex restaurants which you should visit according to dining experts

Grain was one of 11 Essex entries which was featured in The Good Food Guide 2020.

Supermarket chain Waitrose publishes the annual guide which outlines its foodie front runners across the British Isles.