Celebrity chef fights to keep pub business.Byline: Gavin O'Connor A FORMER celebrity chef In its strictest sense, a celebrity chef is a someone who has become well-known for his/her cooking. The first historical personality that fits this description is Martino da Como but in practical terms the term grew in popularity during the 1990s. faces losing his business amid a compensation battle with Dwr Cymru Welsh Water Dŵr Cymru / Welsh Water (DCWW) is a company which supplies drinking water and wastewater services to most of Wales and parts of western England. It is regulated under the Water Industry Act 1991. , the Echo can reveal today. Kami Soroush runs gastropub A gastropub is a British term for a public house ("pub") which specializes in high-quality food a step above the more basic "pub grub." The name is a portmanteau of pub and gastronomy and was coined in 1991 when David Eyre and Mike Belben opened a pub called The Eagle in The Red Lion Red Lion may refer to:
The village is only accessible by one through road. In July 2007 it was the focus of maintenance works as part of the water company's bid to improve supplies. But Mr Soroush said the work lasted more than three months and involved road closures and restricted access, which squeezed trade and hit restaurant profits. Mr Soroush, married to Azita, said good food guide inspectors were also put off visiting, which has cost him prestigious entries in respected publications such as the Michelin, Which and AA guides. "Dwr Cymru have accepted liability and paid pounds 22,694," said Mr Soroush, 50, who has built up a solid reputation after previously running the a ward winning restaurant Trillium in City Road, Cardiff. "But auditors have worked out that is only a quarter of the profits I've lost due to not appearing in the guides and loss of visitors." Mr Soroush made his name as one of the first TV celebrity chefs after appearing with TV presenter Sian Lloyd on the show Get Going. "When Dwr Cymru carried out the work I asked them to put a sign up to say I was still open, but they failed to do so until it was too late," he said. "This year my restaurant should be featuring in around five good food guides, but it's not. "I should've had my busiest three months but the weather and the credit crunch Credit Crunch An economic condition whereby investment capital is difficult to obtain. Banks and investors become weary of lending funds to corporations thereby driving up the price of debt products for borrowers. has left things much, much worse. "The bank is not being helpful, has tightened my overdraft and now the water company is stalling over compensation. If they refuse to pay this money, I will be forced to close." Mr Soroush's claim is being dealt with by financial forensic investigators at firms Rees Richards and Partners, Swansea, and Grant Thornton, Cardiff. He said: "I've taken a big hit and it's very stressful." A spokeswoman for Dwr Cymru Welsh Water said: "We are aware of this ongoing matter, which is in the hands of our legal team. "We are unable to comment at this stage." gavin.o'connor@mediawales.co.uk CAPTION(S): COMPENSATION BATTLE: Kami Soroush of the Red Lion pub at Pendoylan, near Cowbridge PICTURE: Mark Fraser |
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