Bill's Restaurant in City of Durham suddenly closes its doors

On Friday (August 24), staff at Bill’s Restaurant on Saddler Street in the City of Durham worked their last day, as it was announced that it would close for the final time that evening.

The food outlet, which is a chain restaurant, has other facilities in York, Newcastle, Manchester, and Leeds, and serves everything from breakfasts to brunches and evening meals.

Read more: Eating Out: Bill's, Durham City

At this time, it’s understood that the closure facing Bill’s is exclusive to the Durham branch for now.

During its almost eight years in the city centre, it has become a firm favourite for many people, including students, families, and a lot of other groups, due to its welcoming atmosphere and a huge menu.

Just before its closure, it was rated four stars overall out of 1366 reviews on TripAdvisor and had similar sparkling reviews on other sites.

Inside Bill's Durham. Picture: THE NORTHERN ECHO

Despite still showing itself as open to eat on Google, food booking platform Open Table has taken the venue off its site and won’t let you book a table through the service.

As of yet, the closure is yet to be confirmed by Bill’s itself, however, following the sudden closure on August 24, staff members from the branch took to social media to announce their sadness about the closure.

Straight after shutting up the restaurant, one person posted on social media: “Bills Restaurant in Durham will be closed from September 24th. All I can say is farewell and thank you for the ride. Good luck to all my team, I love you all.” While another added: “Bill's restaurant closed today giving staff 30 days’ notice - about 20 people lost their jobs, there’s some great staff in there too. Any employers on here go grab some good staff.”

Bill's in Durham. Picture: THE NORTHERN ECHO

It wasn’t just the staff that were understandably gutted after hearing the news – as people also took to social media to express their sadness.

Posting on Facebook, one person simply said: “Oh no, I loved Bill’s,” while another added: “Not good, I can see other companies closing as well.”

When The Northern Echo contacted Bill’s for a statement on the closure, the response back was “no comment” at this time.

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