Two Kent restaurants have been spared closure as part of a popular chain’s plans to ditch loss-making sites.

There had been concerns the Wildwood branches in Earl Street, Maidstone and St Peter’s Street, Canterbury, could shut when owner Tasty announced its proposals this week.

Tasty, which runs the Wildwood and Dim T brands, revealed plans to axe a number of restaurants after a “challenging” start to the year, and today confirmed 14 set to be axed – with the Kent sites not among them.

Confirming the closure of 13 Wildwoods and one Dim T today, bosses at the firm said: “Our primary focus will be on optimising the performance of our remaining Wildwood and Dim T restaurants and thereby securing the long-term viability and profitability of the company.

“We really want to express our gratitude to all our fantastic staff who continue to show unwavering dedication and commitment during these difficult times.

“We, in turn, are working diligently to explore all avenues to retain as many of our teams from the closed sites as we possibly can within the company.

“We thank all our guests for their ongoing support which we never take for granted, and we hope to see you soon in one of our restaurants.

The Wildwood branches that will close are in Bicester, Birmingham, Brentwood, Cambridge, Chichester, Edinburgh, Kettering, Kingston, Ludlow, Market Harborough, Plymouth Derry’s Cross, Skipton, Worcester, with the Dim T in Loughton also set to shut.

Tasty currently operates 43 Wildwood restaurants alongside six Dim-T pan-Asian eateries, two non-trading sites and three sub-let venues.

On Tuesday, the hospitality group said its financial performance “continues to be inhibited by a tail of underperforming sites, despite efforts at improving operational performance”.

The company added: “The use of a restructuring plan is considered the most effective means to reorganise the group to return it to profitability and secure its long-term future which should change the financial viability, profitability profile and long-term prospects of the group.”

Tasty’s bosses said they expect the plan will improve earnings by up to £2.1 million by the 2025 financial year, particularly through the restaurant closures and other cost savings.

It will enter into a new £750,000 loan agreement with Bet365 shareholder Will Roseff in order to fund the restructuring.

The group said it expects to operate about 30 restaurants by the end of the current year.

The proposals are to be circulated to Tasty’s creditors before a court hearing expected later this month.

It comes as Tasty expects to confirm revenues of around £46.9 million for 2023, up from £44 million in 2022.

It has also trimmed its earnings loss to £900,000 last year from a £2.7 million loss a year earlier.

The group has made “reasonable progress” so far this year “despite difficult recent trading conditions”.