Two Red Hot World Buffet sites are closed by administrator: Two restaurants operated by Red Hot World Buffet, the all-you-can-eat restaurant chain owned by Luke Johnson’s Risk Capital, have been closed following the appointment of administrators. Outlets in Liverpool and Leicester closed their doors yesterday (Wednesday, 27 July) but sites in Manchester and Leeds will remain open for business. The Liverpool outlet has been the subject of hygiene issues that have affected other restaurants in the complex. A deal has also been struck to save the company’s Cardiff eatery. Buffet Restaurants, the group holding company of the Red Hot World Buffet business, appointed insolvency specialists to its subsidiaries in June to assist the group in “appraising its options”. A buyer is thought to be interested in acquiring the Leeds site. A statement from Russell Cash, joint administrator and partner at FRP Advisory, said: “The news is obviously mixed; whilst we are pleased to have secured the future for the Cardiff operation and very encouraged with the discussions we are having with regards to Leeds and Manchester, it is regrettable that we have had no option other than to cease trading from the Liverpool and Leicester locations. With regards to Liverpool and Leicester we are providing the affected employees with as much support as we can to ensure they progress their claims through the Redundancy Payments Service as quickly as possible.” Red Hot World Buffet sold its flagship 24,000 square foot Nottingham site to a new vehicle called Framemill in April for circa £350,000. Framemill changed the name of the site to World Cuisine Buffet. The collapse of Red Hot World Buffet represents a rare sector reversal for Johnson whose original investment valued the company at circa £20m. The most recent full year accounts to the end of January 2015 show Red Hot’s parent Buffet Restaurants had a turnover of £21.5m, Ebitda of £1.26m but operating losses of £1.4m. The Nottingham site’s buyer Framemill is owned by the Kayani family, which previously operated the French brasserie concept Cafe de Amis in Covent Garden. The Leicester site was the only new site Risk Capital opened after acquiring the business. The 400-seater venue, part of the Highcross Shopping Centre, cost £2m to develop, making it the most expensive restaurant in the city.