An independent café and bistro will not reopen after its owner decided against signing a new lease.
Bistro Guy on Gillygate closed due to the lockdown in March, but will not reopen.
Chef and owner Guy Whapples said he had taken the decision “with heavy heart”.
“My rent contract finished in March and feel with the current climate it’s not the right time to be entering into another long rent contract,” he posted on Facebook.
“I have gained many happy and memorable memories which will never be forgotten.”
But Guy revealed he will continue to cook up great food under the Bistro Guy brand.
On the road
Guy opened the bistro in 2011, and described the last decade as a “rollercoaster ride”.
He put on music nights, Japanese fusion taster evenings and woodfire pizza and craft beer nights.
Since closing in March, Guy has participated in the amazing Supper Collective – where indie food businesses cooked up meals delivered to isolated and vulnerable people across York during the coronavirus outbreak.
He also ran his business as a pizza takeaway.
And that is what he’s continuing to do. “The good news is you haven’t got rid of us that easily as we will be bringing the food to you with our wonderful mobile woodfire pizza trailer,” he said.
If you have a private event or know of a village that would appreciate having a visit once a month from the Bistro Guy you can get in touch via [email protected].
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Guy paid tribute to his ‘wonderful’ fellow traders in the Fifth Quarter along Bootham and Gillygate, saying: “Please pop down and support these traders as they need it more now than ever before.”
And diners paid tribute. “Sorry to hear this Guy, I’m sure you will be missed from the street,” one said. “You were our favourite restaurant before the pizzas, and we enjoyed the pizzas too.”