Glaswegian restaurateur Nico Simeone is suing a landlord for £4.4million arising from the 2022 closure of the Liverpool branch of his Six by Nico after flood damage.

In papers filed to the High Court, lawyers say repeated floods and mould in the waterfront building on Liverpool’s North John Street left the restaurant “malodorous and unhygienic” with “rotting and foul-smelling floors“, forcing it to shut.

The site’s freeholder, Highneal, has denied liability, blaming the restaurant’s commercial dishwasher for the flooding. Its lawyers informed the court that Simeone had failed to pay more than £60,000 in rent, so had forfeited the lease signed in 2019.

The Liverpool restaurant was opened amid a flurry of launches of the Six by Nico concept, which offers a frequently changing six-course set meal for under £50 a head – described in the 2024 Harden’s guide as ‘fantastic value‘.

There are now 14 branches around the UK and Ireland, the most recent a new flagship in Glasgow’s Merchant City that opened earlier this month, alongside two new ventures in the city – the Sole Club chippie concept in Finniestoun and a cocktail bar called Somewhere by Nico in Byres Road.

The court case is still at an early stage and has yet to be allocated to a judge.