Prospect cafe at ‘breaking point’ shuts up shop and slams government’s hospitality Covid-19 response

A landmark cafe is shutting its doors as a “circuit breaker”, saying the hospitality industry has been treated like “trash at the bottom of the pile”.

A beloved Prospect cafe has shut its doors. saying ongoing Covid-19 density restrictions and community fear had led owners to “breaking point” after losing two-thirds of their usual business.

Andrew and Bronwyn Taylor have owned and operated the popular Cafe Komodo on Prospect Rd since 2018 but announced on Monday it was temporarily shutting its doors.

“There is far too much fear in the market and with the restrictions, we simply cannot justify staying open at the moment, a special mention to Steven Marshall who has put all small business in this catastrophic situation,” the owners said in a statement.

Andrew and Bronwyn Taylor outside their Prospect business, Cafe Komodo. Picture: Jason Katsaras

Mr Taylor said the cafe, which regularly hosts live music, struggled last week.

“I had two staff who were close contacts last week, so we had to scramble for staff, it’s just been going on for so long now that I’m tired and mentally drained,” Mr Taylor said.

“It just kind of feels like we’re the trash at the bottom of the pile.

“It was a breaking point for me, we struggled and had to dip into our savings to pay our staff, we’ve done that too many times and so I thought, let’s just do our own circuit-breaker.”

Mr Taylor said he and his wife were frustrated with fluctuating restrictions and rules implemented in the last 12 months.

“Having us wearing masks late last year and enforcing that role when there was zero cases, why?” he said.

“The borders weren’t open, no one was coming in … but we all did it because we’re good, loyal South Australians and then we got screwed.”

The owners of Cafe Komodo, Andrew and Bronwyn Taylor, have decided to close their doors in the face of the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak. Picture: Jason Katsaras

Treasurer Rob Lucas said the state government announced grants of $3000 to $10,000 for businesses outside of the CBD and encouraged Cafe Komodo to apply.

“My advice is that there’s no record of having received an application from them so we’d encourage them to make an application,” Mr Lucas said.

“If their turnover has dropped by 30 per cent or more, they are eligible for the grant to help them meet some of their bills in this particular period.

“We understand the challenges cafe owners in particular are confronting at the moment, that’s why tourism and hospitality have been targeted for special taxpayer-funded assistance.”

Mr Taylor said he was aware of the grants available.

“It’ll cover some rent but it’s the tip of the iceberg, it’s more about the strain of it all,” he said

Ms Taylor said the events following the opening of borders in November last year hadbeen turbulent for the business.

“They said ‘oh now we’re going to restrict hospitality again’, but wasn’t the whole point that we were going to live normally? It’s going to be a ghost town,” Ms Taylor said.