Jamie Oliver's Jamie's Italian goes into administration

The business said it had appointed KPMG to oversee the process, with a more detailed announcement expected later.

UPDATE - Readers have their say on Jamie's Italian. And there's a common theme...

Mr Oliver said: "I am deeply saddened by this outcome and would like to thank all of the staff and our suppliers who have put their hearts and souls into this business for over a decade. I appreciate how difficult this is for everyone affected.

"I would also like to thank all the customers who have enjoyed and supported us over the last decade, it's been a real pleasure serving you.

"We launched Jamie's Italian in 2008 with the intention of positively disrupting mid-market dining in the UK high street, with great value and much higher quality ingredients, best-in-class animal welfare standards and an amazing team who shared my passion for great food and service. And we did exactly that."

Reading's Jamie's Italian closed last summer after the chain suffered financial difficulties. 

Jamie's Italian at the Oracle was first announced in 2009 and took over the former Chilis eatery.

What they said then - 

Simon Blagden, managing director of Jamie's Italian said: "Reading has always been high on our list of places to bring Jamie's Italian. It's an important business centre as well as a vibrant commuter town so we know that the people who live and work in Reading will love Jamie's Italian."

The restaurants are designed to be what the company calls 'neighbourhood restaurants' and appeal to a wide variety of customers.

Simon describes them as: "The sort of restaurants that you could just as easily use every week for a casual business lunch or pop in for an evening because you happen to be passing. It's inclusive, welcoming, affordable and most of all, delicious."

However, it disappeared in July last year, and stopped taking bookings afte Reading was listed as one of the branches that was in danger of closure.

The Jamie's Italian in Reading recieved mixed reviews, with an average Trip Advisor score on 3.5 out of 5 before it closed. 

One scathing review, dated 2011, said: "We did not finish our meals and ended up going to Mcdonald's across the road which was much nicer than the food here."

However, others said they enjoyed the food. 

The old Jamie's Italian now houses Greek restaurant Lemoni. 

The adminitration follows a hunt for a new investor in the brand, with a number of private equity firms touted as mulling bids for a stake in the business.

Mr Oliver's restaurant empire has taken a few knocks over the past two years.

In 2018 Jamie's Italian shuttered 12 of its 37 sites, with the latter tranche executed through a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA).

The TV chef's steak house Barbecoa also went into a pre-pack administration, leading to the closure of its Piccadilly branch.

Overseas, five branches of the Australian arm of Jamie's Italian was sold off last year, while another was put into administration.

Despite the troubles, which forced Mr Oliver to pump £13 million of his own money into his Italian chain, he told Press Association earlier this year that casual dining was primed for a comeback.