Famous fast food chain to shut its LAST branch in UK after being ‘forced into liquidation’ with £400k debt
THE LAST branch of a famous fast food chain is set to shut its doors after being “forced into liquidation” with £400k debt.
The unique restaurant went viral back in 2022 with its performative staff being purposely rude to guests.
Karen’s diner on White Lion Street in London’s Islington will close at the end of June after trading for two years.
It’s the restaurant’s last remaining venue in the UK and is regularly described as one of the most memorable and bizarre dining experiences in the capital.
With their deliberately rude waiters, Karen’s has racked up millions of views on TikTok with clips of them insulting customers.
Their website describes it as an “absurdly fun experience” where you are “greeted and waited upon by rude waiters and forced to play a variety of stupid games”.
The unique eatery was inspired by the popular internet meme of “being a Karen“.
This meme references people who love to take their anger out on retail staff and people who typically work in customer service establishments.
The closure of their last UK branch represents a wider shift for the company as it moves away from permanent venues altogether.
They are now looking to establish pop-ups at venues throughout the South of England.
But until then, Karen’s will be serving up their trademark sass in Islington until the end of the month.
A decision not to renew the site on White Lion Street was made earlier this year.
The announcement from Karen’s said they had “enjoyed being rude to thousands of its customers”.
But they cited an increase in fixed costs, including business rates, for the closure of its final London location.
It comes as Viral Ventures UK Ltd, the parent company of Karen’s Diner, was “forced into liquidation” last year after owing £400k to creditors.
A spokesman for the brand said: “We want to thank the restaurant manager and all of his team for all of their hard work delivering great entertainment night after night.
“People don’t understand how hard it is to run both a restaurant and a theatre simultaneously, especially in such fierce trading conditions.”
The eatery was launched in Sydney, Australia in 2021 and opened its first restaurants in the UK in 2022 with locations in Sheffield, Manchester and Birmingham.
Launches in London’s Islington, Barnet and Brighton followed in 2023 in a rapid expansion.
The Sun reported that the chain was growing in popularity with Brits at the time.
The Brighton site closed in March after police found traces of cocaine on a baby changing table.
A man was also slammed for taking his daughter to Karen’s Diner for her eighth birthday.
He shared a snippet of the evening’s events that left people divided with some thinking it was hilarious and others saying it was “appalling” and “disgusting” to take a young child there.