Bristol restaurant Woky Ko closes its doors, blaming the economic crisis and the closure of Gaol Ferry Bridge

Woky Ko owner Larkin Cen has blamed the ongoing works on Gaol Ferry Bridge for the surprise closure of his Wapping Wharf restaurant.

The chef and former contestant on Great British Menu today announced the closure of the Cargo restaurant and also the flagship Queens Road restaurant.

Taking to social media, Mr Cen said it was ‘with great sadness and a heavy heart’ that he had been forced to shut the restaurants. The smaller takeaway Woky Ko operation at St Nicholas Market will remain open as usual.

Founded in 2017, Woky Ko specialised in a range of Asian dishes with techniques rooted in Mr Cen’s Chinese heritage.

His parents ran a Chinese takeaway in Cardiff but Mr Cen pursued a career as a lawyer for many years before becoming a chef and restaurateur. He represented Wales on the Great British Menu series.

Speaking about the closures of his Bristol restaurants, Mr Cen said: “With fantastic commitment and hard work from the Woky Ko team, we managed to stay open throughout the main outbreak of Covid, creating a delivery service for our loyal customers.

“Unfortunately, over the last year, increasing costs, staffing shortages and wage pressure impacted the viability of these two parts of the businesses.

“Further Covid related closures totalled over 200 days across all our sites and now on top of that we are experiencing a very substantial drop in sales at Wapping Wharf due to the main footbridge being closed for prolonged works.

“The price pressure on our takeaway orders caused by the economic squeeze has meant that both locations are no longer viable.”

Mr Cen says the St Nicholas Market operation will remain open as he looks to regroup and stabilise the business.