Hog’s Breath Cafes at Coffs Harbour, Tuggerah placed into liquidation

Two iconic cafes have closed their doors with liquidators revealing one of the stores owes at least $740,000 to creditors and employees. See the reasons for the shock closures.

Two Hog's Breath Cafes have been placed in liquidation in the last week.

Rising inflation, staff shortages and the slow recovery from Covid-19 have taken a bite out of the popular Hog’s Breath Cafe brand with two of the company’s NSW saloons closing its doors.

Customers have expressed shock after the Hog’s Breath Cafe outlets at Tuggerah and Coffs Harbour were both placed into liquidation on Friday.

Famous for their prime rib steaks and party atmosphere, both venues took to social media on Friday stating the restaurants had closed due to “unforeseen circumstances”.

Both stores have traded for at least a decade and made up two of the nine Hog’s Breath Cafe franchise stores that still operate in NSW. The remaining seven are still trading.

Liquidators for the Tuggerah franchise said early investigations into the store’s financial books reveal the operator of the restaurant had struggled to rebound from two years of Covid-19 related restrictions.

A photo of the Hog's Breath Cafe outlet at Jetty Beach in Coffs.

Liquidator Steve Naidenov of Aston Chace Group, who was appointed to oversee the winding up of the restaurant on Friday, said the director of the company had advised the business had also struggled with increased supplier costs.

Other factors contributing to the closure included increased rental costs due to inflation, a lack of qualified and general staff, a recent brand relaunching, and lower customer activity at Westfield Tuggerah as Covid-19 restrictions eased.

The Hog's Breath Cafe outlet at Tuggerah was placed into liquidation on Friday.

Mr Naidenov said the challenging trading conditions meant the restaurant had not been able to operate at full capacity and was trading for only five days, rather than seven days, a week.

He said early investigations into the franchise show it owes at least $740,000 to a mix of secured, unsecured creditors – along with employee entitlements.

“These claims are likely to rise once creditors submit the claims formally,” Mr Naidenov said.

“I note that this is at a very early stage of the liquidation, and it is difficult to have a comprehensive view of the affairs of the company at this point.”

Hog’s Breath Cafe at Tuggerah.

The director and liquidator of the company which operated the Coffs Harbour franchise was contacted for comment, but no response was received before publication.

Hog’s Breath head office was also contacted for comment but did not provide a response.

On social media, multiple comments have expressed shock at the closures with many questioning whether the stores would reopen under new ownership.

“Not sure where we’re meant to go to dinner now,” one person wrote. “Don’t be closed for too long, you know how I love my schnitzel,” wrote another.

The remaining Hog’s Breath stores still trading in NSW include St Marys, Penrith, Wagga Wagga, Orange, Tamworth, Nelson Bay and Port Macquarie.

The first Hog’s Breath Cafe opened in Queensland in 1989. In its heyday, there were 83 Hog’s Breath restaurants in operation across Australia.