The hot dogs at Thoroughfare. In the center: pickled cabbage slaw with peppadew and whole grain mustard. The fast casual restaurant in Yarmouth has closed. Photo by Nicole Wolf/courtesy of The Garrison

Just over two months after closing his acclaimed Yarmouth fine dining restaurant The Garrison, chef-owner Christian Hayes announced on social media Tuesday evening that he has also closed his Main Street takeout restaurant Thoroughfare and the adjacent Dandy’s Handy Store, also in Yarmouth.

On his personal Facebook page, Hayes offered a candid and detailed account of the hardships he and his companies experienced leading up to the closures.

“Our companies grew very fast,” Hayes wrote. “With the devastation of the pandemic came opportunity, which we seized and which seemed like the right direction – to push and play offense in the face of hardship. With all of the growth and expansion that we saw happening came this symbiotic relationship with social media, press, marketing, and exposure.

“In the end, our operation was not capable of sustaining such challenges, and we began to suffer,” his post continued later. “Badly. Our overhead was massive, carrying a monthly burden from our restaurant and catering buildout that continued to suck us dry.”

Hayes, who could not immediately be reached to expand on his Facebook post, also offered a bleak assessment of what current local, national and global economic challenges – many of which were caused directly or indirectly by the pandemic – could mean for the future of the service industry.

“Real estate, cost of goods, cost of labor, shortage of labor, utilities, supply chain, cost of living for the communities around us and our employees – they are contributing to a massive storm that is relying on this antiquated ecosystem of a business model that will be the death of this industry as we know it,” Hayes wrote.

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Hayes said that closing the properties became the only option when it became clear they couldn’t make payroll. “It was sobering and humiliating knowing we were having issues taking care of our most cherished and important assets of the entire world we had built around us,” he stated.

Hayes opened his post conceding that he had “disappeared” for the last year and a half. “I have been stuck in this unintentional paralytic state of sorts, a self-imposed retreat of broken spirit and reflection,” he wrote, noting later in the message, “I will spare the details but I have not been healthy the past 18 months.”

In late July – also citing money problems – Hayes closed his upscale restaurant The Garrison, which launched in the former Sparhawk Mill five years ago. The venue was known for its creative, elegant Mediterranean- and Asian-influenced cuisine.

Hayes launched Thoroughfare in 2020, while The Garrison was on hiatus, in response to the need for takeout food at the start of the pandemic. Dandy’s Handy Store, a corner store offering sundries, wine, beer, baked goods and grab-and-go meals, opened in 2023.

Hayes explained that the former Garrison space will be available for rent for private events and popups. Going forward, he plans to focus on his Dandelion Catering Company, his original business from 2008.

“We are focused on simplifying and streamlining the catering company to be as thoughtful and fulfilling as it should be,” Hayes wrote.

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