Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal says weight-loss drugs are killing restaurants – despite taking them himself.
He said that people are going to want smaller portions because brands like Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro stop appetite.
As a result, there has been a decline in desire for tasting menus at fine dining restaurants such as his three-Michelin-starred The Fat Duck.
Meanwhile, labour, ingredients and fuel costs have increased while diners’ appetites are decreasing and so they are ordering less.
The chef admitted he is worried for the future of his industry and believes it will only get worse when the weight-loss drugs become more accessible in the form of over the counter patches or tablets.
His restaurant group has taken a hit as it reported post-tax losses in 2024 of £2.1 million, after a loss of £1.4 million in 2023.
However Blumenthal has been taking Wegovy to to combat the effects of his bipolar medication.
He was sectioned following an acute manic episode in 2023. The illness caused the father-of-three to suffer hallucinations that led him to see phantom guns and believe the television was talking to him.
He was eventually admitted to a psychiatric hospital for three weeks, where he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
But high doses of treatment has caused him rapid weight gain.
‘I’ve put on so much weight, but it’s starting to come off now,’ he said. ‘I’ve lost eight kilos,’ he told Times Radio.
The bipolar medication has also caused ‘brain fog’, slurred speech and problems with balance.
It was his wife, entrepreneur Melanie Ceysson, who asked doctors to admit him for psychiatric treatment.
I was only until he was sectioned he knew he had bipolar and thought he had only been living with an ADHD diagnosis he got in 2017.
‘I had no idea. No idea at all,’ Blumenthal said. ‘And upon reflection, I realised that some of my past behaviour has not been normal.’
He has previously spoken of having a lot of road rage as a teenager. He also recalled that upon starting The Fat Duck he was able to survive on very little sleep – and suspects this was another potential early warning sign of bipolar disorder.
The multi-award winning restauranteur said he still has suicidal thoughts, but they have lessened in intensity.
He said: ‘Before, they were: how can I do it? And now, they are just thoughts’.