WOOD shuts its doors citing raft of rising costs
Simon Wood has closed his WOOD Manchester restaurant after seven years of serving up fine dining on First Street.
The Mancunian chef and onetime winner of Masterchef cited a barrage of rising costs from all sides when he announced today (Wednesday 2 October) that WOOD Manchester would close with immediate effect.
In a statement on Instagram, Simon explained: “Dear Friends, Customers and Suppliers of WOOD Manchester. It is with much regret that I have to inform you that I must close the doors here at WOOD for good, with immediate effect.
“We have had 7 years as part of the Manchester City dining scene and I’m very proud of what the team and I have achieved.
“Sadly with COVID rent arrears now being demanded by our landlord and an increasingly difficult marketplace, energy increases, ingredient costs and soon to be spiralling business rates we just cannot make this work.
“I’d like to thank everyone for your support and patronage over the years. Thank you. Simon.”
The Oldham-born chef garnered praise following his 2015 Masterchef win, going on to oversee the executive events at his beloved Oldham Athletic FC including dining events and masterclasses.
He then opened his WOOD Manchester restaurant on First Street, off Tony Wilson Place, in late 2017 and later WOOD Chester the following year.
Here at Confidentials we sent Jonathan Schofield to review WOOD Manchester back in 2017, with the Editor-at-large praising it with a 15/20 score and saying “everybody in Manchester who appreciates good food must go. The menu gives variety, the food looks lovely, there’s interest in every dish and flavours are strong. The service here is excellent too.”
Meanwhile Publisher Mark Garner, with his Gordo hat on, paid a visit in October of last year - with Jonathan in tow - and was less enamoured.
In his review 14/20 review he said: “The common problem in Simon’s current cooking is the overkill of ingredients, many unrecognisable in the bar-room brawl that takes place in many dishes.
“Coco Chanel advised ladies, before leaving the house, to look in the mirror and remove one garment. In this case, many dishes need to do a full strip.”
Reviews with fear nor favour aside, it’s always a shame to see a local chef and his staff have to close due to the tightening jaw of rising costs and landlord rates, and we wish Simon and all at WOOD the best in their future endeavours.
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