The dinner party could be coming to a close for San Francisco-based Kitchit, a catering startup with $8.1 million in investments according to Crunchbase.

That news came from anonymous sources to Investors Business Daily, and may represent one of many casualties to come in a food and dining startup space usually referred to as "crowded."

Update: In a statement to Investors Business Daily via email, Kitchit CEO Brendan Marshall wrote that, "Like many startups in our proximity, Kitchit is navigating turbulent times" but "no such decision has been reached and we continue to be actively engaged in fundraising conversations."

Kitchit began as a private chef-booking operation in 2012, a "marketplace" for catering chefs to advertise menus and book clients. The company's operations gradually expanded to Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York.

Then Kitchit changed direction in 2015, moving its focus from customized menus to standardized ones in which most elements of the meal were pre-pared. That offering, called Kitchit Tonight, was still served by Kitchit-approved chefs at customers' homes, but the cost per person, which included three courses and clean up, began at a mere $39 per person, depending on the menu, at a two-person minimum.

While the company characterized the pivot as a move to focus on the "runaway hit" of the Kitchit Tonight offering, either someone was getting carried away, or else the $39 price wasn't generating enough revenue. Maybe too many small and not enough large parties were taking advantage of the offering? It might be time to invest elsewhere — like in a cookbook.

Update 4/28/16: They made the shutdown official today, as TechCrunch reported, and founders Brendan Marshall and Ian Ferguson said goodbye on the company's site saying, "While Kitchit’s business fundamentals have always been strong, our scale has been too limited to outshine the tumult around us."

Previously: Kitchit Ends Private Chef Service, Will Focus On Kitchit Tonight Instead