Grim reason for TV chef Manu Feildel’s career move

TV chef Manu Feildel has revealed why he will never go back to doing one thing as he prepares for something a little different.

TV chef Manu Feildel has revealed he never plans to run a restaurant again due to the dire state of Australia’s hospitality sector.

The My Kitchen Rules star made the comments as he prepares to trade his apron for a suit to impart words of wisdom to Sydney small business owners in a series of roadshows.

Among Feildel’s advice will be reflections on his own vast experiences, including a recently affirmed decision to never run a restaurant again.

“I wouldn’t want to own a restaurant more than ever now,” he said.

Manu Feildel is taking part in a series of roadshows. Picture Rohan Kelly

“The thing is, three years ago when I first said it, the restaurant world was already difficult.

“Now, we’re talking about losing staff, we’re talking about the rent going up, we’re talking about costs going up – vegetables, protein, everything is going up in price.”

Feildel explained that widespread chain supply issues hade forced owners to pass price hikes onto their customers.

“People can’t afford to go to restaurants for a while because it’s going to be more expensive and if the restaurateurs don’t but the price up, then there’s no margin,” he said.

“So now the purpose of running a business in a restaurant is questionable.”

The famously French fan favourite also detailed how QR code technology, despite having its merits, could lead to chaos for kitchen staff.

“Now you often see a QR code in the middle of the table to order, which is great, but what it means is the customers are sending their own orders to the kitchen, but there’s no time limit,” he said.

“The chefs could receive up to 50 orders in a minute and it becomes a nightmare out the back, so there’s definitely a lot to sort out that side too.”

My Kitchen Rules stars Manu Feildel and Nigella Lawson. Picture: Supplied/Channel 7 and Channel 7+

Feildel said the pandemic’s border restrictions and widespread lockdowns forced many foreign hospitality workers out of Australia.

“We haven’t got the people to run restaurants and through Covid we’ve lost I think 200,000 staff in the industry in Australia,” he said.

“Half of them have gone back home and half of them have decided to do something else because they have bills to pay and they’ve decided not to come back.

“You can’t run a business without staff, but the solution isn’t this either because then there’s going to be a lot of people without a lot of work.”

Feildel is partnering with advisory service My Business for the Sydney roadshows.

The TV star made his name owning or working in restaurants such as Bilson’s and L’etoile in Sydney.

However, he shifted scope during the pandemic and launched his own sauce range, By Manu.

The business has doubled profits in the past two years.