A ONCE-popular bar and restaurant in Kilsyth has gone into liquidation with the loss of more than 30 jobs.

The Boathouse at Auchinstarry Marina, run by Town House Restaurants, was launched nearly 10 years ago, but yesterday accountants and businesses advisers French Duncan were appointed liquidators. A total of 36 people will lose their jobs.

Town House had also owned the Wheelhouse in Falkirk, but that changed ownership in January.

A notice on the venue’s website yesterday read: “Resolutions have been passed to wind up Town House Restaurants Limited and place the company into liquidation.

“The Boathouse Hotel and Restaurant has therefore ceased to trade with immediate effect.”

The closure came as Scotland’s casual dining sector continues to operate under serious pressures, with 76 restaurants closing in the first six months of this year – three more than for the whole of 2017.

Eileen Blackburn, head of restructuring and debt advisory at French Duncan, said: “The closure of the Boathouse is indicative of wider financial difficulties facing the casual dining sector which is currently encountering unprecedented issues which are resulting in failure for a growing number of operators.

“Far more restaurants close without entering into a formal insolvency process so the numbers struggling financially on a day-to-day basis will be much larger than the official numbers indicate.

“Operating a restaurant profitably has always been difficult but there are growing complications from rising rents and rates, increased staff costs, and higher supply costs.”

Many high-profile chains have announced partial or substantial closures this year, including Gaucho, burger group Byron, Jamie’s Italian restaurants, the Strada Italian restaurant chain, Carluccio’s and Prezzo.

Blackburn added: “The sector has an issue with over-capacity, with rising costs and issues over some operators using outmoded business models.

“Many restaurants compensate for lower customer numbers by using discount vouchers which can work in the short term but may, ultimately, lead to a vicious circle of voucher dependence, lower income, and reduced profitability and, ultimately, closure.

“The growth of delivery services has opened an enormous new market from food outlets that never delivered before giving consumers the option of saving some money by eating takeaways at home.”