A judge has found the award-winning Dinner by Heston Blumenthal insolvent, with debts of at least $A10 million ($NZ11 million), including $A4.4 million to employees.
Federal Court Judge David Yates accepted an administrator's evidence the foreign-registered eatery was insolvent and could not service its debts given it was about to be evicted from its Crown Melbourne premises.
Those debts were estimated at $A10.8 million, including employee debts in excess of $A4.4 million, a debt of $A1.885 million to the restaurant's principals and $A1.1 million to landlord Crown Melbourne.
The administrator said the debts may be understated, Justice Yates said.
The restaurant on its website promotes itself as "one of the world's most exciting restaurants" and an "ultra-modern dining experience".
It was deemed a two-hat restaurant in the 2019 Good Food Guide.
It's the second high-profile restaurant to reveal financial problems this week.
On Monday, Melbourne celebrity chef George Calombaris put much of his restaurant empire in the hands of administrators, jeopardising about 400 jobs.
Calombaris is a former judge of Australia's MasterChef programme, while Blumenthal was a guest judge.
