Steakhouse chain to close all 20 UK restaurants – on September 3

The closures come as part of a major overhaul launched by its parent company (Image: Getty)

An astonishing 66 family-friendly pub and restaurant chains are set to vanish for good from the UK’s streets in just a matter of weeks, as parent company Whitbread moves forward with a sweeping overhaul of its hospitality business. The popular steakhouse brand Bar + Block is the latest high-profile victim of the major restructuring, with all 20 of its UK and Northern Ireland locations scheduled to shutter permanently on Thursday, September 3.

The closures mark the end of the road for the all-day steakhouse concept, which Whitbread launched in 2016 to attract a younger, more modern crowd. Known for its affordable cuts, extensive cocktail list and relaxed atmosphere, the brand was a hit with locals. Among the sites closing their doors are the Whiteley Shopping Centre and Portsmouth branches in Hampshire. The loss of the Whiteley site, in particular, leaves a prominent vacant space in the popular retail hub.

Bar Block was an all day steak house, which was created in the hopes of drawing in a younger crowd (Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Cllr Sudhakar Achwal, Liberal Democrat for Whiteley and Shedfield, expressed his sadness at the sudden departure: “It is a shame that Bar + Block is closing; the restaurant has been in Whiteley Shopping Centre for a few years. It has been a popular place in Whiteley, and I am sorry to see it close.”

Customers of the chain received an email this week confirming the final day of trading. The message read: “We have some important news to share about the future of our restaurants. As you may have seen, we have recently announced changes to our business, which are resulting in the closure of our Branded Restaurants.

“This means that on Thursday, September 3, 2026, all UK and Northern Ireland Bar + Block restaurants will be closed. From all of us at Bar + Block, thank you for being a valued customer.”

Bar + Block isn’t the only brand being phased out as Whitbread refocuses its core business operations toward expanding its lucrative Premier Inn hotel network.

The September 3 deadline will also see the end of Whitbread’s Table Table – ending an 18-year run – and Cookhouse + Pub sites across the UK.

All 106 Beefeater restaurants will close permanently on September 10 (Image: Getty)

The purge doesn’t stop there, with all 106 remaining Beefeater locations set to disappear for good on September 10, and Brewers Fayre restaurants will shut down completely only three days earlier.

In total, around 200 branded restaurant sites will be closed as part of the total shift, wiping out a huge portion of Whitbread’s traditional casual dining footprint.

The drastic decision comes as part of an aggressive five-year plan to slash costs and maximise space. Earlier this year, Whitbread chief executive Dominic Paul pointed to severe economic pressures facing the hospitality sector – including significant cost increases driven by ex-Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ rises in National Insurance and business rates – as a key driver for the change.

Under the survival plan, Whitbread will sell off 110 restaurant sites outright and convert roughly 112 underperforming sites into more than 3,500 new Premier Inn hotel rooms. While up to 3,800 job roles are at risk as part of the national cull, Whitbread maintains it is trying to minimise compulsory redundancies.

A spokesperson previously said: “As a business which recruits around 15,000 people every year, we expect to be able to retain a significant proportion of those affected and will be looking to redeploy as many of our impacted colleagues as possible.”