Hatted restaurant Julie and community hub Cam’s Kiosk have both racked up tax debts and entered voluntary liquidation. Other operators say that rising operating costs have made doing business impossible.
Updated ,first published
Hospitality operators have issued a clarion call following the closure yesterday of two well-loved venues at Abbotsford Convent, which documents show were saddled with $883,000 in debts to the Australian Taxation Office.
Cam’s Kiosk, open at the convent since 2009 and well patronised, owes $584,000 while Good Food chef’s hatted restaurant Julie, which traded for nearly three years, owes $299,000.
The restaurants, both led by Melbourne founder-restaurateur Cameron Miller, have appointed liquidators and ceased trading, as reported yesterday. It is not yet known how much each business owes other creditors, including suppliers and staff.
Experienced operators such as Jason Jones of Entrecote restaurant in Prahran, who has worked in hospitality for three decades, wrote an impassioned comment on social media describing the industry as “broken”.
“The maths are not mathing [adding up],” he wrote, outlining a breakdown of a hospitality venue’s costs.
Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.
He estimates that 40 to 45 per cent goes on wages, 30 to 35 per cent on cost of goods and services, 10 per cent on GST, with the remaining 15 to 20 per cent to be spread across rent, marketing, loans, insurance, taxes, training, permits and more.
In response to questions, Jones added: “it’s never ever been this hard” – even compared with the GFC or COVID-19 lockdowns – due to the rising cost of goods, wages, insurance and utilities in recent years. He also estimates that spend per head is down 15 to 20 per cent.
Other business owners described the news as “a devastating sign of the times” and expressed how “tough” the trading environment is at present.
In May, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported the price of dining out had risen 4 per cent over the past 12 months, driven by increases in ingredient, wages and operating costs. Food spend was the second-highest contributor of annual inflation.
Announcing the closure of Cam’s Kiosk and Julie, Miller said in a statement: “Despite exploring every avenue to continue operating, it is now no longer possible for both Julie and Cam’s to continue in their present form.
“The hospitality industry has faced significant challenges in recent years, and despite every effort to adapt, trading conditions ultimately proved unsustainable.”
Data from insolvency specialists Rodgers Reidy shows there were 465 winding up applications across Australia in March 2026, compared with 374 the year prior.
Cam’s Kiosk built a community by hosting regular live music, events and other happenings at the convent, evolving from a cafe to a bar and restaurant in its 16 years. It shot to fame in 2025 when pop star Dua Lipa visited.
The venue had expanded in recent years, with Miller opening fine-diner Julie next door in September 2023 with the help of business partners. Last year, he added a small adjoining gallery bar to Cam’s Kiosk that was more suited to walk-ins, after the original venue became more of a dining destination.
“These businesses have been built slowly and with the hard work of many talented, dedicated and caring people,” Miller’s statement continued.
“I am deeply grateful to our staff, customers, suppliers and the wider community who have supported us over the years. Together, we created restaurants where people could gather, celebrate and make memories.”
Julie, set within an old convent dining room that previously housed pay-as-you-feel restaurant Lentil As Anything, scored a hat in its first Good Food review,with critic Dani Valent praising the elegant, French-influenced menu driven by produce grown on the convent grounds and nearby Collingwood Children’s Farm. She described it as an “instant treasure” for Melbourne.
Miller’s statement continued: “This is the end of a chapter that has meant a great deal to me personally, and one that I will always look back on with gratitude. We remain grateful to have been part of the Abbotsford Convent arts and hospitality community for so many years.”
Miller declined a request for comment.
The news is a further blow for Abbotsford Convent, which is dealing with financial uncertainty, board resignations and tenant disputes, as reported by this masthead.
Emma Breheny – Emma is Good Food’s Melbourne eating out and restaurant editor and editor of The Age Good Food Guide.
