A popular burger chain among hipsters has been forced to close its doors at one of its venues.
Diners were left shocked after arriving at Mary’s on Castlereagh Street, in Sydney’s CBD, to find a locked door and scribbled cardboard sign.
‘Closed 4 eva,’ the sign read.
‘2014 – 2023, RIP Mary’s CBD. Thank you to every one of you. Love from the CBD team and Mary’s. See you down the road, much love.
Patrons turning up at the central Sydney outlet for hipster chain of burger bars Mary’s were greeted with a shock closure notice
Mary’s outlets are known for serving calorie-laden and high-stacked US-style burgers
‘See you down the road’ is a likely reference to the Mary’s burger bar that still operates at Sydney’s central ferry depot of Circular Quay.’
The burger chain is well-known for its signature American-style cheese-melted calorie-laden stacked burgers served in a grunge bar.
Social media users were divided over the closure announced on Reddit with some saying they were put off by the aesthetic of the venue.
‘I get a weird vibe from Marys,’ one person wrote.
‘Their whole ‘punk’ aesthetic whilst charging $20+ for a burger, expensive drinks and underpaying staff. It’s all just BS branding.’
‘Did this have the same vibe as the Newtown one?’ another wrote.
‘Yeah I love going out for average quality, expensive cheese burgers and not being able to talk to my friends because of the loud music.
‘I’m clearly not the target market but hey, I do like loud heavy metal, just not when I want to actually socialise.’
Another harsh review stated: ‘Their $20 dollar burger tasted like a McDonald’s cheese burger.’
It appears to be a fall from grace from a chain that opened its first burger and liquour licensed premises in a converted church located in the hip inner Sydney suburb of Newtown.
The chain, which offers dining in dimly lit surrounds with a thumping soundtrack, has expanded to also offer outlets in Moore Park’s Entertainment District, to the south east of the Sydney’s CBD, and in the north west suburb of Castle Hill.
Owners Jake Smyth and Kenny Graham, who also own Sydney’s Lansdowne and Unicorn pubs as well as Mary’s Underground jazz bar, were forced to issue an apology in 2020 for calling young hospitality workers ‘whining’ and ‘self-entitled’.
On a previous podcast Mr Smyth called work-life balance ‘one of the most dangerous terms young people have been introduced to’ ‘one of the most dangerous terms young people have been introduced to’.
‘To be clear, our staff are the reason that Mary’s has come to be what it is. Its strength is them, its purpose is them, and we love them all deeply,’ the owners told the Sydney Morning Herald.
However, they claimed some employees agreed with their comments, but admitted others had ‘been deeply hurt by them’.
In 2021 a union representing hospitality workers accused the Mary’s chain of wage theft and fostering a ‘toxic’ workplace.
Hospo Voice, an arm of the United Workers Union, told news.com.au that venues were taking a ‘calculated risk that they won’t get caught’ not paying staff properly and if they are caught ‘the penalties will be light’.
Mary’s owners Kenny Graham (pictured left) and Jake Smyth were forced to apologise for comments they made about young workers
Mary’s outlets are known for their dimly lit atmosphere with thumping heavy metal soundtracks
‘What’s really disheartening is that these kinds of stories of shoddy working conditions in hospitality have been making headlines for years now, and yet businesses still feel they can brazenly flout the law,’ union spokesperson Karma Lord said.
In response the Mary’s group issued a statement.
‘To comment on unsubstantiated allegations does not seem sympathetic to the fragility of such sensitive topics,’ it read.
‘As a business, we treat all staff matters with the respect and privacy they deserve.
‘We are unaware of such allegations and have no claims placed against us. Our back of house systems are an open book to those authorities with a legitimate claim to seek them out.’
High costs and labour shortages are forcing many hospitality venues to the wall.
In April 140 food and accommodation businesses became insolvent nationally, which is second only to the 243 construction businesses that went bust, according to figures from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Mary’s owners have been contacted for comment.
