Owners of two top-rated central London restaurants are braced for crunch talks over their future, according to reports.
The threat of closure is currently hanging over Italian la carte eateries The Petersham and La Goccia both in Floral Court, Covent Garden.
A row erupted between the Boglione family, behind Petersham Nurseries, and their landlord Shaftesbury Capital over rents.
Discussions to determine the restaurants’ existence will take place between the parties early next week, with administrators at Buchler Phillips lined up in the event of closure, the Daily Telegraph said.
Petersham UK Limited, which runs the businesses, has already submitted two High Court filings in a month to declare an intention to appoint administrators, designed to give the company breathing space while attempting to negotiate lower rents.
It is understood that the rental dispute only relates to The Petersham and La Goccia, and not the wider Petersham Nurseries business, which includes a garden nursery, lifestyle shop and a Michelin Green-starred restaurant in Richmond.
The family launched the brand in the early Noughties from their home Petersham House – a 17th century property in south west London.
After taking over the neighbouring garden nursery in 2000, Italian entrepreneur Francesco Boglione and his wife Gael set about establishing Petersham Nurseries, which opened its doors in 2002.
Lara Boglione, the couple’s daughter, took over the day-to-day running in 2011 and broadened out the empire to include wine merchant Petersham Cellars.
She was also the driving force behind the family’s decision to open their Covent Garden restaurants in 2018.
Strain across the business recently led to HMRC submitting two winding-up petitions against Petersham Cellars, although both have since been withdrawn.
Mrs Boglione splits her time between London and Italy, where her husband Giovanni’s family has an estate in Tuscany.
In November, she told the Financial Times the impact of higher rent could not be underestimated, adding: “In order for the businesses’ continued viability we need to resolve this as soon as possible, having already made extensive efforts to [have] constructive discussions with the landlord.”
The Telegraph said it understands talks have been underway in recent weeks, although a resolution to the discussions has been delayed by the festive period.
Shaftesbury Capital and Buchler Phillips were approached by the Standard. The Boglione family declined to comment to the Telegraph.
