Croydon Main Street: Mr T’s Burgers and Fried Chicken to close on May 1

Burger lovers in the outer east have been dealt a blow, with a cult business set to shut its doors.

Dean Travers, owner of Mr T's Burgers and Fried Chicken, is closing his store after two and half tough years. File picture.

Outer east fast food lovers have been dealt a blow with a popular Croydon burger joint to shut its doors after only two-and-a-half years of trading.

Dean Travers, owner of Mr T’s Burgers and Fried Chicken, will close his store for good on Sunday, May 1, with the view of opening a new store closer to the city in the future.

Mr Travers had developed a cult following since opening on Hewish Rd in late 2019, and was voted by Leader readers as Maroondah’s favourite burger store in a poll last year.

He said the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and declining dine-in numbers had led him to his decision to sell up.

“Since January there’s been a huge downturn in business, and not many people dining in,” Mr Travers said.

“Takings have been down about 30 per cent week on week, things haven’t picked up, and every time we think we’re going to catch back up, they don’t work out.

“Being a solo operator is a bit hard, and the people coming in were probably better suited to take over my store and had a bit of backing behind them.”

The Famished Wolf, a burger chain with three stores in Melbourne’s southeast, will take over Mr T’s space and open its fourth store in the near future.

Mr Travers said he was sad to be leaving Croydon, saying his sales had boomed ever since his closing down announcement.

“If I had been busy as what I’d been last weekend regularly, it would have been easier to stay,” he said.

“The aftermath of Covid has not helped and I don’t think its going to get better anytime soon. “Hospitality is always the first to suffer because people cut back on going out.”
Mr Travers said he was hoping to open a new store potentially in Abbotsford or Elsternwick, as he felt “people living in apartments are likely to dine out a bit more”.

He urged locals to regularly shop at independent eateries to ensure they continued to thrive.

“It’s all about supporting your local businesses, but being consistent with it, otherwise bigger businesses will come in and buy it up,” he said.

“It doesn’t matter what it is, a coffee place, a burger shop or a pizza place – get out and support them.”