A FLAGSHIP town centre Indian restaurant has closed.

The East Z East venue in Blackburn town centre shut this week after a possession order was placed upon it.

And now Blackburn with Darwen Council has revealed it is seeking to terminate the firm's tenancy of the premises in the side of King George's Hall in Northgate,

The possession order which initially closed the restaurant is understood to relate to a business and legal dispute between the original partners in the venture.

It is nothing to do with the council which owns the building.

The notice says unauthorised entry to the restaurant is a criminal offence.

The council is now seeking to terminate the current lease and looking for a new tenant who can make the most of the premises' prime location in the Northgate Conservation area and the £3.8million Blakey Moor Townscape Heritage Project hospitality and cultural quarter.

The East Z East restaurant has been plagued by problems since it was first mooted in 2018 with a family dispute over the use of the brand name followed by a poor food hygiene rating and a relaunch with new owners in 2020.

The council had to 'write off’ £124,682.94 in unpaid debts by two companies involved in the venture later that year.

East Z East's Facebook website currently says: 'Temporarily Closed'.

Blackburn with Darwen Council's Conservative group leader Cllr John Slater said: "This has been a fiasco from start to finish.

"I will be seeking to find out if the council has rent owing or any other financial liabilities from this.

"I told them at the beginning this would all end in tears and it has."

A spokesman for Blackburn with Darwen Council said: “We can confirm that we have served notice with the intention of forfeiting East Z East’s lease.

“The restaurant building is an important part of our brand new cultural quarter for Blackburn with tens of millions of pounds set to be invested in the area surrounding King George’s Hall.

“Our priority is supporting the town centre as we re-build after the pandemic.

"That includes ensuring we have a tenant who can maximise this building’s full potential.

“It would be inappropriate to comment further at this time other than to confirm that robust action is being taken by the council.”

The Lancashire Telegraph has been unable to contact the current owners of the restaurant.

* The owners of EastZeast which runs restaurants in in Manchester, Preston, and Bradford and will open a further branch in Leeds in July have asked us to point out they have no connection with East Z East Blackburn. They are separate companies.