The owner of two Stratford restaurants that closed because of soaring costs sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic says he didn’t see a financial way out of it.
Both Braai House and Braai Bar closed last week after first opening in August 2019 and owner Anthony Jordaan says it was because of mounting debt from the three-and-a-half years of the pandemic that saw the restaurants closed for a total of 360 days.
Jordaan says he knew the temporary loans offered to help keep businesses open had to be paid back at some point but he adds recovery has been slower than expected with soaring interest rates and a struggling economy.
He says the loans were offered during a time when they were desperately needed.
“When those government-backed loans were coming out we weren’t forecasting or planning ahead in those times, all we were thinking about was great, we can survive another couple of months, we can keep the doors open”
Jordaan says it will take him some time to pay back the debt with money having also been borrowed from family and buildings leveraged.
