A restaurateur has told how he was forced to close down his business after an adjoining hotel was turned over to housing asylum seekers who scared off his customers.
Jamie Darby, who has owned Ceno bar and restaurant in Southampton for 20 years, says he is reluctantly shutting his doors as a direct result of problems with Highfield House Hotel, which the Home Office uses to house up to 100 migrants.
Ceno had been a popular dining spot since the early 2000s but customer numbers fell sharply after the hotel directly above his ground floor restaurant stopped accepting paid guests five years ago, Mr Darby says.
He says that while these guests would often frequent his restaurant, other loyal customers have been put off by large groups of young men loitering outside.
Mr Darby told the Daily Mail: ‘I’m devastated, 20 years of my life have just been thrown away. I’ve come out of the end of it absolutely skint.
‘Everything I had personally was sunk into the restaurant, I borrowed money from family and friends to keep going. We’ve been forced out.
‘The business was successful until five years ago when the hotel started to house illegals.
‘It’s impossible to run a business with 100 young men loitering around.
Jamie Darby who owns Ceno Bar and Restaurant in Southampton said illegal migrants have damaged the business and made it almost ‘impossible to operate’
Jamie Darby (pictured) says he is reluctantly shutting his restaurant down as a direct result of problems with Highfield House Hotel
Pictured: Highfield House Hotel in Southampton that houses up to 100 asylum seekersÂ
‘I can’t sell it, I can’t do anything with it. The decline in business is because of who lives above us.’
In the last two years, Mr Darby says his turnover has been halved as customers deserted the once-popular restaurant.
The closure has cost four full-time staff members their jobs as well as numerous casual and part time staff.
He said, although there is no evidence to support the claims: ‘Groups of girls don’t want to come here because they have groups of men leering and whistling at them out of the windows.
‘My 22-year-old daughter was propositioned – it’s just disgusting
‘Southampton is a university city and we employ a lot of young students but often they would leave because they were too frightened.’
Mr Darby says he hasn’t received any meaningful help from his local MP or the police despite pleading with a senior officer to protect him and his staff.
He also claims he has been locked out of the shared car park for six months and that hotel occupants caused water to pour into the restaurant by allowing sinks upstairs to overflow while washing their feet.Â
Highfield House also been the site of weekly anti-immigration protests in recent months, causing further disruption.
The demonstrations are regularly met with counter protests from anti-racism groups and there is often a heavy police presence at the scene.
And an Afghan national housed at the hotel this week pleaded guilty to sex offences against three women over a five-day period after arriving illegally.
Local residents hold an anti-immigration protest outside Highfield House Hotel in Portswood, Southampton
Pictured: Ceno Restaurant was part of the Highfield House Hotel building in Southampton
Sohail Amiri, 30, appeared at Southampton Crown Court on Monday where he was remanded in custody to be sentenced next month.
The closure of Ceno restaurant, which specialises in British food, was first announced on Facebook.Â
The statement read:Â ‘It is with great sadness that we announce that Ceno Restaurant closed its doors on January 1, 2026.
‘Despite every effort to continue trading, it has become frustratingly impossible to operate due to ongoing issues connected with the Highfield Hotel in which we are located, which has now become home to over 100 illegal immigrants.
‘The hotel owners have ignored our communication for help to assist with ongoing damage caused by the hotel residents and have locked the car park for many months, meaning our customers have been unable to park and access the restaurant.’
The popular restaurant has been successful for over 20 years and was rated 4.6 stars on TripAdvisor.
Locals online have shown their support for Ceno and shared their disappointment at the news of its closure.
Curt Wright said: ‘Thank you for the exceptional service and some of the nights I have spent in the place, without a doubt one of the best atmospheres and nicest places to have a drink and chill out.’
Another frequenter Kayleigh Hilton, said: ‘We are absolutely devastated, so many of our most precious memories have been at this Ceno site.
‘However, we’ll continue to be behind the team & look forward to your next venture!’
Debbie Kennett added: ‘Cenos has leased the restaurant for 20 years. That’s 20 years of memories who celebrated there.
‘The business started to fall away when the immigrants moved in. I saw some of the abuse that the immigrants would shout down from their windows above.
‘The guy who’s restaurant it was, did his best to stay open. Did his best to try and not let the hotel drag down Cenos.
The demonstrations are regularly met with counter protests from anti-racism groups and there is often a heavy police presence at the scene
‘The immigrants burnt holes in his awning when it was bought new. They would play awful music and turn it up on full volume just to be annoying.’
Ceno restaurant claims the last five years have been especially challenging, as the hotel stopped serving the public.
‘Despite these obstacles, we are incredibly proud of what we built together with our fantastic customers’, added the Ceno spokesperson.
‘To the local residents of Highfield who continue to live nearby, we wish you the very best and hope that the difficulties we have faced do not impact you and your families in the future.
‘Most of all, we would like to extend our sincere thanks to our wonderful customers and those members of the Highfield community and beyond who have supported us right up until New Year’s Eve.
‘Your loyalty and kindness have meant more to us than words can say.’
There are plans to relocate the restaurant and reopen in the spring.
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘We are furious at the level of illegal migrants and asylum hotels.
‘This government will close every asylum hotel. Work is well underway, with more suitable sites being brought forward to ease pressure on communities and cut asylum costs.
‘We are working closely with local authorities, property partners and across-government so that we can accelerate delivery.’
Southampton Stand Up To Racism group – which clashes with anti-immigration protests outside the hotel – said far-right activists were to blame.
A spokesperson said: ‘Attempts to blame asylum seekers or the hotel for the bar’s closure are misplaced and unfair.
‘Ceno Bar traded successfully for years alongside the hotel. Its decline followed the start of sustained far-right activity last summer.’
They added: ‘Over recent months, their repeated demonstrations outside the hotel – often two or three times a week and lasting for hours – have caused serious disruption.’
A spokesperson for Hampshire Constabulary added: ‘Our local neighbourhood policing team have regular contact with businesses in the area, and have made near weekly visits to Cenos in recent months to try and engage with them and understand if there are any issues they want to raise or discuss with us.
‘However, no concerns have been raised with our team on these visits.
‘We are also not aware of any incidents of criminal damage.’