Gordon Ramsay’s new restaurant hit by theft of nearly 500 cat figurines

Nearly 500 cat figurines have been stolen from a new Gordon Ramsay restaurant in one week at an estimated cost of more than £2,000, the TV chef has said.

The restaurateur recently launched Lucky Cat by Gordon Ramsay, in Bishopsgate in central London, featuring the beckoning Japanese cat models called maneki-neko.

The 58-year-old told ITV’s The Jonathan Ross Show: "The cats are getting stolen. There were 477 stolen last week - they cost £4.50 each."

The City Of London Police said it has not received any reports of theft from the restaurant.

The number of cat figurine’s stolen would amount to a loss of £2,146.50.

The maneki-neko figurines are believed by some within Japanese culture to bring good luck and have been a feature in the Lucky Cat restaurants.

Ramsay, known for his Hell’s Kitchen and Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares reality TV programmes, also said that he had issues with couples entering the toilets together.

The restaurant, which serves Asian-inspired cuisine, opened earlier this month in one of London’s tallest buildings, skyscraper 22 Bishopsgate.

Reflecting on his more than 80 restaurants globally, Ramsay said: "It does get a bit scary, in terms of how big it is and the global impact."