A WELL-KNOWN chain of Cork cafés has closed its outlets in the city centre, in Grange in the suburbs, and Ringaskiddy in the county with immediate effect.

In a statement, the operators of Perry Street cafés Brian Drinan and Paul Coffey said that they were saddened to have to announce the closure of their outlets.

“It is with deep regret that we announce the immediate closure of all three Perry Street Market Café locations,” the operators said.

They said the hospitality industry has faced “unprecedented challenges in recent years” and that the difficulties are intensifying.

“Reflecting on the many good years, we want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who visited our restaurants. We have had the privilege of serving wonderful customers, watching families grow and sharing countless memorable moments with our community,” the statement said.

“A special thank you goes to our fantastic team who were truly the face of Perry Street. “Your dedication and warmth have been invaluable and we are incredibly grateful for everything you have done.”

They said that the decision to close “was not made lightly and we are genuinely heartbroken to reach this point”.

Meanwhile, spiralling costs, the high rate of VAT and increases in overheads has led to a number of high profile closures in the Irish hospitality industry in recent months.

Repeated calls by the hospitality industry for the reduction of the VAT rate from 13.5 percent to nine percent were not heeded in the recent Budget.

Over the past twelve months Cork has seen the closure of one of Ireland’s longest running Chinese restaurants Tung Sing, in addition to the popular Nash 19 cafe and the Jackie Lennox fish and chip takeaway.

Eurostat, the EU’s statistical agency, has said that Ireland is the second most expensive country in the EU, behind only Denmark, with consumer prices 42% above the EU average.

Ireland is the third most expensive country in the EU for restaurants and hotels – and the second most expensive for alcohol.