Iconic Melbourne restaurant Lobster cave battling collapse
Popular Melbourne seafood restaurant Lobster Cave is in danger of collapse, with owner Vasilios Fergadiotis, better known as Bill Ferg, linked to several food-related businesses which have quietly collapsed with debts of more than $11 million.
Ferg, who is behind signature dish the ‘Fergburger’, took over several food wholesalers earlier this year, but all have gone bust in recent months with millions of dollars of debt.
One of those businesses had been operating for nearly 100 years.
Another Ferg business was in court recently as a creditor looked to force it into liquidation to recover what they claim is an $897,000 debt.
Now Lobster Cave is in danger after loan company Flexicommercial, a subsidiary of humm Group Limited, an Australian fintech, issued a winding up notice against Lob Nominees Pty Ltd according to an ASIC notice.
Flexicommercial offers credit, commercial lending and buy now pay later services.
“We are limited in what we can say at this time because of litigation and negotiation matters, as we deal with the challenges,” Ferg told news.com.au.
The hearing is expected to be held at the NSW Supreme Court on September 16.
It has been a rough year for Ferg, who is the sole director of Extramile Trading, which went into liquidation earlier this year with debts of $8.6 million.
According to a statutory report submitted by the appointed liquidator, Stephen Dixon of insolvency Hamilton Murphy, to the corporate regulator Extramile has 64 unsecured creditors owed $7.225 million.
Extramile fell over after a major supplier withdrew credit support. The business was another also hit by Covid-19’s economic downturn. Creditors aren’t expected to recover any of their lost money.
Other businesses that collapsed were wholesaler Green Earth Industries, which distributed dairy and vegetable products. It went bust with debts of $856,000.
Marsh Dairy Products founded the 1930s is now in administration with debts of about $2.5 million but continues to operate.
“Since the date of my appointment, I have continued to trade the business,” Dixon said.
Dixon has sold some assets to get back a small return for creditors of $273,000.
“An offer for the purchase of the company’s business and assets has been accepted and I am currently working with the purchaser to finalise the sale,” he wrote.
The Lobster Cave is iconic in Melbourne and was the scene of a poltical scandal in 2017 when a Liberal politician was seen having dinner with an alleged Melbourne mafia boss. The incident was dubbed ‘lobster with a mobster’.
Earlier this year, an elderly driver accidentally drove through the restaurant.
Jonathan Jackson, 3rd September 2024
