Pizza chain on the brink, 120 jobs at risk

A well-known chain of pizza restaurants is near collapse with administrators appointed and the business put up for sale.

A well-known chain of pizza restaurants is near collapse with administrators appointed and the business put up for sale.

Bondi Pizza operates three large restaurants in NSW — in Parramatta, in Macquarie Park’s Macquarie Centre and in Westfield Eastgardens in Sydney’s southeast.

Another restaurant, in the Sydney suburb of Randwick, does not appear to be affected by the administration.

Know more? | [e-mail]

Bondi Pizza’s Parramatta restaurant is in administration.

The businesses that have fallen into administration include Casual Dining Concepts (Holdings) Pty Ltd, Casual Dining Concepts (Leasing) Pty Ltd, Casual Dining Concepts (Stores) Pty Ltd, Casual Dining Concepts (Trading) Pty Ltd, Bondi Pizza Bar & Grill (Macquarie) Pty Ltd, Bondi Pizza Bar & Grill (Parramatta) Pty Ltd and Bondi Pizza Bar & Grill (Eastgardens) Pty Ltd.

They are all owned by sole director Gary Linz.

Administrator Jonathan Keenan from BRI Ferrier, who was appointed alongside his colleague Peter Krejci to run the restaurants last Friday, told news.com.au that he was considering all options to save the business and the jobs of the 120 staff who work for the companies.

This includes restructuring the business, while a sale process has also begun.

Mr Keenan said the business had been affected by “adverse trading conditions as a result of Covid”.

He declined to reveal the size of the debts the companies has accumulated but said there were “substantial” amounts of related party debt and a “substantial” debt to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), which included historical debt.

Mr Keenan added that trade creditors and staff were owed some money but payments to both groups were relatively up-to-date.

A creditor’s meeting has been scheduled for March 11.

The company also operates restaurants at Westfield Eastgardens and in the Macquarie Centre in Sydney’s north west.

The news follows the recent collapse of a popular Oporto in Sydney’s Newtown, with the ATO forcing that business to either pay half a million in back taxes or shut its doors.

In another sign of the dire situation facing many hospitality businesses during a cost of living crisis, a beloved Sydney cafe also shut its doors recently, with its owner describing the hospitality industry as “a bit broken”.

Last month, news.com.au reported that popular Sydney nightclub called The Carter had gone into liquidation.

The hospitality sector is one the hardest hit industries in the current economic downturn, alongside the construction sector, which both run on extremely thin margins, making these types of businesses usually the first casualties in a high inflationary environment.

Late last year, arm of major Victorian catering business, Legacy Hospitality Group, went bust in October with debts in excess of $1.7 million.

National restaurant chain Sushi Bay also collapsed in 2023, with its last remaining Sydney, Darwin and Canberra branches ordered to shut down, amid allegations that workers had been underpaid $650,000 over a number of years.

In June, controversial restaurant chain Karen’s Diner went into liquidation with $4.3 million worth of debt.

Know more? | [e-mail]