Never short on ambition, he once tried to buy Wolverhamton & Dudley, Robert Breare has had a couple of recent triumphs and is unlikely to be visiting a loan shark anytime soon.
First there was the sale last year of Bank to the Individual Restaurant Company for £32m – he was and remains chairman - and last month the news he had entered into a joint venture with property magnate Sir John Ritblat to develop his Merchant Inns concept.
However Kitchen Rat hears this particular industry mover and shaker hasn’t always been so flush.
A London restaurateur recounted recently a tale of meeting Breare at Surrey’s award-winning Westerly to discuss the sale to him of his restaurant group.
However, Breare was late and when he did finally arrive he rushed in clearly flustered. “He asked me if I had £20 to pay the taxi driver as he hadn’t been near a cash machine,” recounted the source.
Being a gent, and keen to keep an interested buyer on side no doubt, the restaurateur in question put his hand in his pocket and found the required readies without further delay.
Sadly, Breare never did buy his group and – no doubt it simply slipped his mind being busy and all – the restaurateur has never seen his 20 quid again.