POPULAR pizza and cider chain The Stable has closed its Poole restaurant.

The Poole Quay venue was part of the chain, which started in Bridport around 10 years ago and has since expanded to more than a dozen other venues.

The closure comes just two months after The Stable on Custom House Quay in Weymouth closed its doors for good.

The windows of the restaurant, on the corner of the High Street, have been painted over and all signage has been removed.

The Stable is known for its huge range of ciders and innovative pizzas including the Lamb Roast, The Blazing Saddle and Billy the Kid.

It was launched when an old, run-down stable off the High Street in Bridport was renovated and opened as a cider bar. The pizzas were introduced soon afterwards.

The Stable has another, popular restaurant in Westover Road in Bournemouth.

Other venues include, Southampton, Winchester, Bath, Bridport, Bristol, Kew, Plymouth, Birmingham, Exeter, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Fistral and Falmouth.

The Stable was founded by Richard and Nikki Cooper, who opened their first restaurant in Bridport in 2009 and later expanded to numerous other towns and cities.

Fullers bought a 51 per cent stake in the business in a reported £7.2 million deal in 2014.

A Fullers spokesman told the Daily Echo: "We constantly review our estate and, due to rising costs, we have had to take the difficult decision to close the Poole site."

Following the closure of the Weymouth restaurant, a Fullers spokesman said the branch had not performed as they had hoped and it was a commercial decision.

The spokesman added: “The other Stable sites continue to deliver an outstanding cider and pizza offer to customers from Falmouth to Kew Bridge and we are still very excited by the potential of this excellent, young brand.”