The troubles that have beset Sydney’s Public Hospitality group this week have impacted its two Melbourne venues, the hatted Saint George in St Kilda and Hotel Clifton in Kew.

Both venues are trading this weekend but face an uncertain future following the appointment of receivers and external managers at five Public Hospitality hotels in Sydney. Both restaurants’ websites are down.

Saint George has high-profile chef Karen Martini leading the kitchen, while Hotel Clifton is stewarded by the Grossi family, with Guy Grossi overseeing the food direction in the bar and the associated Puttanesca restaurant.

“We don’t know a lot,” says Elizabeth Grossi-Rodriguez of Grossi Restaurants.

“We are waiting to see what’s happening and trying to work through everything. We are in the same boat as everyone else and trying to understand what it means for us. Hopefully it all gets sorted out. We wish we knew more.”

The family is a supplier of services to Public Hospitality. “We are not involved in the business side of things,” says Grossi-Rodriguez.

The pub has been trading strongly, she says. “I feel like it’s still going well which makes it even more of a shame.”

Karen Martini, meanwhile, is awaiting confirmation of a new ownership entity for the large St Kilda venue she oversees, hoping the process will be completed within days.

“Public Hospitality is no longer,” she says. “The Melbourne venues are being separated from the Sydney ones that went into voluntary administration.”

Saint George’s website, telephone and email have been affected however. “It’s extremely frustrating,” she says.

The situation is a particularly savage blow for Martini and her husband, Michael Sapountsis, less than a year since they were ejected from Hero at Federation Square by landlord ACMI in a blunt same-day announcement.

Martini assures diners it’s business as usual: highlights of the current menu include focaccia studded with grapes and char-grilled pork chop.

“Unusually, we have plenty of tables available tonight and tomorrow,” she says, noting that she is protecting staff and suppliers, and that she expects all staff and their entitlements to transfer to a new entity.

“As you can imagine, it’s a very difficult time for Michael and I being kept at arm’s length as to developing issues and dismantling in Sydney.”

Insolvency specialist FTI Consulting stepped in earlier this week as receivers and managers to operate Public’s hip Redfern pub, The Norfolk, Oxford House in Paddington and Darlinghurst’s The Strand Hotel, as well as Alexandria’s Camelia Grove Hotel and The Exchange Hotel, also in Darlinghurst. The pubs will be sold as soon as possible.

Duncan Clubb and Andrew Sallway of advisory firm BDO have also been appointed voluntary administrators at affiliated companies, including Public Lifestyle Management Pty Ltd.

“We will be working closely with management of the venues to ensure they continue uninterrupted by this process while we seek new owners for the venues to secure their future,” says receiver Vaughan Strawbridge from FTI Consulting.

Strawbridge is confident the hotels will sell quickly: “We expect a lot of interest in these venues and will work closely with venue management to achieve a successful outcome.”

In late July, Public seemed to have put its troubles in the rearview mirror when it announced it had refinanced more than $400 million in debts.

But problems have persisted. The Australian Financial Review reports that 12 Public venues, including Empire Hotel in Annandale and another Exchange Hotel in Balmain, remain unaffected and have separate “loans in place with Deutsche Bank and Sydney-based Archibald Capital”.

Public Hospitality has been approached for comment.

With Scott Bolles and Emma Breheny