Staff are being informed this morning (31 July) with the keys set to be handed back to the landlord.
Tutt – who founded the 90-cover restaurant in 2019 after winning MasterChef the previous year - told Restaurant that the financial situation at the town centre site had become “untenable”.
“It's an emotional day for me and my wife Lucy (with whom Tutt co-runs the business). It has taken every fibre for us to keep it going,” he says.
“We have had some fantastic times, it's been a real adventure. I want to say a huge thank you to the customers that have supported us over the years. The laughter is ingrained in the walls here, there have been some really beautiful times.
“I would also like to thank my staff. We have a great team here and I will do everything I can to support them to remain in the hospitality industry.”
The news follows the closure of his California-inspired restaurant and café Bayside Social earlier this year.
“Treading water”
Tutt says that Pitch – which was billed as a homage to the West Sussex seaside town and a “celebration of home-grown and locally sourced produce” - had been “treading water” since the pandemic, with the more recent rises in utilities, food costs and wages combining to create a perfect storm.
A slowdown in demand has also been a factor. “We got a big whoosh of support after Covid. Then things went back to normal, and shortly after things dropped to minus normal,” Tutt continues.
The combination of rising costs, lower demand and the extra burden of a Covid Business Interruption Loan (CBILS) have seen Tutt make changes to the business, including trying different opening hours and menus and adjusting staffing levels and service style.
“We have tried everything. But at the end of the day I don’t want to compromise on the food and the service here and there are some costs that I just didn’t want to pass on to the customer. It was very important to me that Pitch remain accessible.”
More casual endeavours
Tutt will continue to run his smashburger concept Patty Guy, which has company-owned locations in Brighton's Shelter Hall as well as a more recently launched site in Hastings.
In addition to this, there are currently around 60 Patty Guy kitchens trading across the UK thanks to a franchise agreement the chef has with food licensing business Sessions.
Tutt is also looking to open a site within Worthing's Dome Cinema. The name is being finalised, but the venture is likely to offer elevated 'cinema-esque' food including hotdogs and sandwiches.
The chef has not ruled out a return to higher-end restaurants, either. "We have learnt a huge amount. I would love to return to the finer end of things,” he says. “The Pitch site was certainly a factor in all of this. It was large and spread over several floors which made it challenging to operate. Small is what you want these days.”
