It comes after the French provincial style eatery opened only in April 2017 at The Mill Residence, off Sturt Highway.

Sous chef Shaun Mcfarlane said it was unfortunate news, but the decision by management was due to lower-than-expected foot traffic.

“We’re not getting the foot traffic that was promised when we decided to rent in this location,” Mr Mcfarlane said.

“When we decided to rent here, it was supposed to be a booming area,” Mr McFarlane said.

“There was supposed to be a hotel behind opening up at the end of this year – that hasn’t happened.

“The brewery was supposed to open in October, to our knowledge, and it also hasn’t happened.

A lot of the things that were supposed to happen in this area hasn’t.”

Mr Mcfarlane said that those who do enter the premises at the site “would’ve made conscious decisions to come for the food”.

“You’ve got three food stores, so there’s nothing else that’s different to attract them to this area,” he said.

Compounding the low foot traffic is the cost of rent.

While it has not increased since opening, Mr Mcfarlane said the Wagga location is about $1500 more per month than Pig and Pastry in Petersham.

“That’s in the middle of Sydney,” he said.

“We’re in the country and it’s more expensive.

“As well, the costs of the electricity and gas and all the usual overhead factors that come into play.”

Asked about the highlights, however, Mr Mcfarlane said it was meeting “all of our lovely customers, of course”.

“We also got to meet a lot of great people upstairs but there’s not enough to keep the business afloat.”

In February 2017, owner Peter Neil said he wanted to duplicate the ambience, physical appearance and menu of his Petersham restaurant.

“In the early stages we’ll bring things down from Sydney but we hope to quickly morph towards self-sufficiency with our own vegetable garden for that authentic farm to table experience,” he said.

Looking ahead, Mr Mcfarlane and colleagues will need to find new employment.

“Our employer has been really good – they’re doing up resumes for all the staff who need it, including references,” he said.

“They’re helping us as much as possible to find new jobs.”

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