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MARCO PIERRE White, the mercurial chef who has become one of London's most powerful restaurateurs, is pulling out of two of the capital's most exclusive eateries after failing to make them profitable.
His decision to hand control of The Oak Room and Titanic back to the hotels which house them will raise speculation that Mr White's restaurant interests are struggling. Accounts filed last year at Companies House suggest that MPW Criterion, his umbrella company, lost pounds 2.24m in the most recent financial year.
Although a spokesman contested the figure and denied that there were any trading losses at the two restaurants, most of London's upmarket eateries have struggled to shake off the absence of tourists from the capital since 11 September.
Titanic - a big, noisy venue- has also been a target of the critics, condemned by Harden's as "a disaster, with sub-standard food and zero atmosphere... little short of shocking."
Richard Harden, co-publisher of the restaurant guide,...