SUNDAY Brunch presenter and Chorlton-based restaurateur, Simon Rimmer, has offloaded one of his two Greater Manchester restaurants.

Those who wanted to stay have, and those who wanted to leave have moved on...

Earle on Cecil Road in Hale – which was once voted the ‘Top Celebrity Restaurant’ by The Observer – has been sold to Barry Hogan, owner of popular local bar-restaurant Hogan’s of Hale.

The news comes almost exactly ten years after the rising, self-taught chef launched the neighbourhood restaurant alongside former Liverpool midfielder Jason McAteer.

Speaking with Confidential, Hogan said that Rimmer’s increasingly busy schedule meant he was 'no longer able to give the restaurant his full attention'.

.Earle, Cecil Road, Hale

Since the acquisition three weeks ago, Hogan has moved both his front of house and kitchen team – including new head chef Maciej Mordel – over to Earle, where they hope to 'improve upon the restaurant's hard won reputation' and 'go after more rosettes'.

Hogan told us that staff at Earle were informed of the sale months in advance, and that "those who wanted to stay have, and those who wanted to leave have moved on."   

The team will look to 'tweak things' over the coming months, with a potential name change and refurbishment slated for next year.

Rimmer, meanwhile, retains his stake in Didsbury restaurant, Green’s, his two gastro pubs in Merseyside and a restaurant in Dubai.

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