Businesses linked to one of Northern Ireland’s best-known restaurants are to be wound up by court order.

Winding-up orders were made at the High Court in Belfast on September 17 against The Red Panda (Bournemouth) Limited and The Red Panda Restaurant Limited, which has its registered office at 60 Great Victoria Street in the city.

The orders were published in The Belfast Gazette, an official Government publication.

Both winding-up petitions were sought by the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers Superannuation Committee (NILGOSC), the owner of The Waterfront complex in Bournemouth where a Red Panda restaurant was located until February this year when it closed down.

NILGOSC is Northern Ireland’s largest pension fund. Its £2.5bn fund includes a property portfolio of £148m.

The Red Panda in Great Victoria Street is still trading and was yesterday answering queries about Christmas bookings.

The Red Panda brand was born in 1999 when the first restaurant was opened by entrepreneur Eddie Fung.

New Red Pandas were later opened at the Odyssey Pavilion in Belfast and at Junction One near Antrim.

Mr Fung left the Red Panda business around three years ago to concentrate on his Zen and Fat Buddha Japanese restaurants.

Two other companies, Red Panda (Odyssey) Limited and Red Panda (VI) Limited, which has its registered office at Kilbegs Road in Antrim, are separate companies and are not the subject of any winding-up orders.

The registered office of The Red Panda (Bournemouth) Limited is listed by Companies Registry as SG Murphy & Co Solicitors of Shore Road, Belfast.

No one from SG Murphy & Co, or from The Red Panda Restaurant Limited in Great Victoria Street, was available for comment yesterday.