The owner of The Luxe, the high-end Mediterranean restaurant abruptly closed in Farnham’s Lion and Lamb Yard earlier this week, has spoken out for the first time.

The manager described the shutdown as “a horrible thing” and claims the business was not given a fair warning.

The Luxe, which opened in 2023 after a £1 million renovation of the former Laura Ashley store, was closed by enforcement agents on Tuesday, June 10.

A legal notice posted to the door stated that, under the terms of the lease, the landlord had taken back possession of the property.

The restaurant’s manager says the issue was a disagreement over live music being played in the venue.

“I can’t say too much because it’s going to court, but the main issue is the licence and live music,” he said. “The landlord doesn’t want us to do live music.”

According to the manager, a letter was sent 10 days before the closure.

“We got in touch with our solicitor and the same morning they closed us down,” he added.

He acknowledged there had been complaints from a couple of neighbours previously, but the owner claimed there had been no issues since and no indication from the council that they were in breach of any rules.

“We haven’t had any warning from the council,” he said. “We have a very good relationship with them. We’ve been following all the rules.”

The owner pointed out an inconsistency as other businesses in the area host DJs and live performers, and even the local council organises music events inside Lion and Lamb Yard.

The manager said the business would have complied immediately had a clear warning been given. “If they’d sent us a warning, we would have stopped the live music,” he added.

Instead, the sudden action has left staff without work and bookings cancelled on what should have been one of the year’s peak periods.

“This weekend is Father’s Day, which normally is one of our most busy weekends of the year,” they said. “But we’re having to cancel all our reservations. It’s so frustrating.”

The restaurant is now preparing for a legal action in hopes of reopening. But the owner says the way the situation has been handled goes against the values he expected to find in the UK.

“We really hope we can come back. It depends on what the judge says,” he said.

“This is England, this is not Afghanistan. Music shouldn’t be forbidden in the country.”

The Luxe aspired to be a flagship destination in the town, featuring marble interiors, 'disco toilets,' and ambitions to become a premier venue for food and entertainment in the South East.

Its sudden closure has left customers and performers alike in the dark.

Management say their next step is court — but in the meantime, the doors remain locked.