A businesswoman has relinquished her control of a string of well-known Norwich restaurants in a bid to save 150 jobs.

Sarah-Jane Roberts has seen her venues The Mulberry, The Langtry, Beluga Bar, and The Buck Inn at Thorpe, taken on by new owners after Indulge Ltd went into administration.

It comes after she was told that the taxman would pull the plug on her company if it failed to clear tax debts amounting to £121,932, a creditor's report stated.

But Miss Roberts said the deal – which will see the pubs and bar taken over by Taste Inc Group – would secure the future of the establishments and 150 staff.

She said: 'As you will know, the recession has proved a difficult time for many UK businesses in the hospitality sector.

'This pressure along with competition from national chain brands amongst other matters has come to bear pressure on Indulge Ltd. 'Despite my resolve to soldier through it all, it soon became apparent that such a course of action was not going to be feasible.

'My main concern was to do my best to secure the jobs of my employees – some 150 in total. With a view to achieving that, Indulge Ltd was put into administration and whilst it is sad to see Indulge Ltd go, I am pleased to state that the jobs of all of my employees have been saved; and my aspirations of bringing to Norfolk great dining and drinking venues remain resolute.'

Documents revealed the company had called in administrators UHY Hacker Young in May this year.

It followed a tough period for the company, which had faced pressure from increases in rent, labour and food costs.

In January, the bank said it was looking to review the firm's overdraft facility, while it became clear its venues needed more investment, the creditor's report stated.

The final blow came in March when Indulge Ltd's major creditor HMRC threatened to wind-up the firm for non-payment of VAT and PAYE/NIC debts of £121,932.

But the total amount owed to unsecured creditors – including food suppliers, insurance providers and local authorities – had reached £224,000, according to the creditors report by UHY Hacker Young on June 20 this year.

The report stated: 'The company started to struggle financially when the company's landlords increased its rents on all sites.

'This resulted in the profit margins of the business becoming very tight.

'At the same time labour costs increased due to a shortage of skilled chefs in the area. The sites that were food led also struggled to make necessary profits with the increase of food costs.

It added: 'The Beluga Venue particularly suffered with national brands descending into Norwich. The likes of Revolution and their new brand Rev de Cuba opening just steps away.'

The HMRC said it could not comment on individual cases due to confidentiality, but said it did not set out to wind-up companies. A spokesman said: 'HMRC's aim is not to wind up companies or make individuals bankrupt, but to collect, as efficiently as we can, any debts that are due.

'HMRC only initiates winding up or bankruptcy action where it believes this is the best course of action to protect the interests of the Exchequer in respect of a particular debt. We do not take such action lightly.'