Shrewsbury restaurant to serve last dish
One of Shrewsbury’s longest-running Indian restaurants is to close its doors after nearly 30 years and relocate to new premises as a takeaway service.
Shalimar restaurant, which opened in Abbey Foregate in 1989, will close at midnight on May 27.
The following day management and chefs will move to premises at 131 Hereford Road – opposite The Brooklands – where they will continue to provide a takeaway service.
The Shalimar will celebrate its 28-year history during its final week.
Management say a national shortage of good curry chefs and problems in recruiting front-of- house staff led to the “difficult decision” to close the popular restaurant.
“We would soon be in a position where we would not have enough staff to maintain a proper level of service in the restaurant,” said a spokesman.
“A lot of our customers have been very upset at the prospect of the restaurant closing, but we hope to maintain the special relationship, that we’ve built up with customers over the last 28 years.
“It does feel like the end of an era, but the Shalimar name will continue. Initially we will offer a takeaway service. A Shalimar restaurant may one day be back in the future.”
A national shortage of qualified curry chefs has created a crisis in the £4.2 billion curry industry with two Indian restaurants, on average, closing each week.
Hundreds of curry houses have closed over the last two years and it is feared that up to a third of the industry – 4,000 restaurants – could be lost.
