Ed Sheeran's fashionable Notting Hill restaurant has emerged as the latest casualty in Britain's escalating pub crisis, with its debt soaring to almost £1.3 million. The upmarket Bertie Blossoms, launched by the global superstar in 2019, has failed to achieve profitability, grappling with severe challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic and its aftermath, as detailed in recent financial disclosures.
Financial Struggles and Staff Reductions
Accounts filed in December 2024 for That Dive Bar Portobello, the corporate entity through which Sheeran operates the business, revealed net current liabilities of £1.3 million. The balance sheet indicates a dramatic decline of £763,000 since December 2021, underscoring the restaurant's precarious financial position. Concurrently, staffing levels have been slashed, with the team reduced to just five employees, down from six the previous year and a peak of ten in 2020.
Pandemic Impact and Customer Criticism
Bertie Blossoms, situated on Portobello Road in West London, opened its doors in September 2019, only to face immediate turmoil when forced to temporarily close in 2020 due to pandemic restrictions. Notably, Sheeran chose not to furlough his ten staff at the time, instead covering their wages personally. In a bid to attract patrons, the singer offered a 50 per cent discount on white wine in 2021 to encourage takeaway orders.
However, the eatery has encountered harsh criticism from diners, with some lamenting its £19 dishes as tasting akin to "second-rate microwave meals." Online reviews on platforms like TripAdvisor have highlighted limited menu options and subpar quality, with one customer describing the kitchen as resembling a "roadside catering van." The restaurant, reportedly named in honour of Sheeran's wife Cherry Seaborn, frequently updates its menu, featuring items such as steak, pasta, and chocolate prune brownies, though previous menus listed only nine dishes.
Broader UK Pub Crisis and Political Responses
This struggle mirrors a wider crisis engulfing pubs across the United Kingdom, with an estimated two establishments closing daily post-pandemic. Reform UK has recently unveiled ambitious proposals to rescue the hospitality sector, pledging to reduce VAT to 10 per cent, slash beer duty by 10 per cent, and eventually abolish business rates for all pubs if they secure victory in the next election.
Funding and Industry Statistics
Reform's plan, financed by reinstating the two-child benefit limit for most except British working families, aims to save approximately £3 billion by 2029/30 to bolster pubs. The party also intends to scrap the employer national insurance increase introduced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. According to the British Beer and Pub Association, the number of pubs has plummeted from 69,000 in 1980 to 46,350 in 2021, with the Campaign For Real Ale reporting a thousand closures in 2025 alone.
Trade bodies attribute these closures to rising costs from business rates, duty hikes, wage increases, and new waste regulations. UKHospitality estimates that recent budget measures added £1 billion in extra national insurance costs last year. Despite a government rescue package offering a 15 per cent business rates discount next year, critics like Reform MP Lee Anderson argue that both Conservative and Labour policies have "facilitated" thousands of pub losses over the past decade, eroding a cherished British tradition.
