Restaurateur Jeremy King ousted from fine dining group Corbin & King

theguardian.com:

Jeremy King, the famed restaurateur behind the Wolseley and the Delaunay, has been ousted from the fine dining group he founded in 1981.

King, who with his business partner Chris Corbin launched and ran many of London’s top restaurants including the Ivy in Covent Garden, Wolseley next to the Ritz on Piccadilly, Delaunay on the Strand and Le Caprice in Mayfair, announced on Friday he had lost a battle to buy his venture, Corbin & King, out of administration.

The bidding war was won by American-born Thai billionaire William Heinecke’s Minor International, which is understood to have paid more than £60m in an auction that took place early on Friday morning. Minor had previously owned 74% of Corbin & King, and had forced the company into administration.

In an email to regular diners, which includes many FTSE 100 chief executives as well as celebrities such as Tom Cruise, David and Victoria Beckham, Joan Collins, Nigella Lawson and Paul Smith, King said he had tried to buy the restaurants but lost out to Minor.

“We took part in the auction to try and buy the business and assets of Corbin & King that we didn’t already own, including of course all the restaurants. Regrettably, that attempt failed and Minor Hotel Group was the successful bidder, buying the entire business,” he said in the email.

“As a result, I no longer have any equity interest in the business although for the time being, I remain an employee. I assume Minor will take immediate control of the restaurants.”

Dillip Rajakarier, chief executive of Minor International, said: “Given the global appeal of Corbin & King Ltd’s iconic portfolio of brands, it is no surprise that competition for the business was so strong.

“We are delighted that our offer was accepted, and we can