Fears are growing that three Brewers Fayre restaurants in Kent could be among several venues earmarked for closure by owner Whitbread.

The group also owns The Long Reach Beefeater in Whitstable, The Woodlands Beefeater in Gravesend and Table Table in Herne Bay, which KentOnline last week revealed are no longer taking bookings beyond July 4.

Meanwhile, at all the other branches in the county, customers can still reserve a table after this date.

Whitbread, which also owns Premier Inn, remains tight-lipped over the future of individual venues, saying any changes are still subject to consultation.

But now the Brewers Fayre restaurants in Margate, Bexleyheath and Leybourne, near West Malling, are also only taking bookings until July 4.

A Whitbread spokesperson told KentOnline last week: “Any changes are subject to consultation so it is not possible to say with any certainty as to what and when anything will happen.

“It is also worth noting that all sites are open and trading as usual.”

At the end of April, Whitbread announced it is to axe about 1,500 jobs across the UK amid plans to slash its chain of branded restaurants by more than 200 in favour of building more hotel rooms.

The group said the job cuts come from its total UK workforce of 37,000 employees.

It said the move is part of a plan to “optimise” its food and drink offering, to add more than 3,500 hotel rooms across its estate and increase “operational efficiencies”.

Whitbread said it plans to sell 126 of its branded restaurants, with 21 sales already having gone through. It will also convert 112 less profitable eateries into new hotel rooms.

Customers at The Woodlands previously told KentOnline they believe the Gravesend restaurant is set to close on July 5 as part of the proposals.

When asked by KentOnline earlier this month if the Whitstable and Herne Bay venues are set to close, a Whitbread spokesperson confirmed both could be impacted by the proposals the company has announced.

When pushed on whether the two sites could close or be sold, the spokesperson said they were unable to provide more specific detail as the proposals are still being worked through.

They added: “We recognise that this will be unsettling for our team members and we are providing them with dedicated support.

“We are committed to working hard to enable as many as possible of our team members to stay with us by either transferring into new roles, or by taking up other vacancies across the business more broadly through our existing recruitment activity.”

In a statement in April, Whitbread said: “The majority of our sites, including our existing 387 integrated restaurants and our remaining portfolio of 196 better performing branded restaurants, will continue to operate as normal and are not affected in any way.”

Whitbread has been contacted for additional comment on the Brewers Fayre restaurants.