Oakman to combine various businesses to simplify structure and ‘reflect true value’ of company, terms agreed on further four sites: Oakman Inns and Restaurants has revealed it is combining its various operating businesses to simplify … view

Alison Brittain, Nisha Katona and Thomasina Miers awarded New Year’s Honours: Whitbread chief executive Alison Brittain; Nisha Katona, founder of Indian street food restaurant Mowgli; and Thomasina Miers, founder of Mexican restaurant b … view

Anglian Country Inns reports like-for-likes up 4.1% as turnover hits £11m: Anglian Country Inns, the award-winning operator of gastro-pubs and restaurants led by James Nye, has reported like-for-like sales increased 4.1% for the year end … view

Burning Night Group bought out of administration: Bar company Burning Night Group has been bought out of administration, saving more 300 jobs. Bierkeller sites in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Nottingham, which also operate … view

Whitbread gets EU clearance for £3.9bn Costa Coffee sale to Coca-Cola, announces share buyback programme: Whitbread has received clearance from the European Union under the EC Merger Regulation for its £3.9bn sale of Costa Coffee to Coc … view

The Times – Loungers to push ahead with float plan: Cafe bar group Loungers is to push ahead with plans for a £250m-plus stock market listing despite growing economic and political uncertainty. The company, which is backed by Lion Capi … view

Core Recruitment – companies are taking control of their own data: Sector recruitment firm Core Recruitment has noted a trend towards companies taking control of their own data in 2018. In a note to clients, Core Recruitment principal K … view

Hop founder – potential for at least 30 sites in London following launch of evening format: Paul Hopper, founder of City-based Vietnamese street food concept Hop, has told Propel he believes there is potential for at least 30 sites in … view

Patisserie Valerie boss outlines new initiatives as Starbucks executive joins team: Patisserie Valerie’s new boss has outlined a series of initiatives being introduced as he appointed a Starbucks executive to a key commercial role. Rhys … view

Research reveals extent of industry reliance on foreign workers, particularly in restaurant sector: The huge extent the hospitality industry relies on foreign workers, particularly in the restaurant sector and seasonally in pubs, has been … view

UKHospitality – vital sustainability measures must be affordable to achieve success: New measures to promote sustainability and cut waste must be proportionate and affordable, UKHospitality has said. Following the government’s announc … view

Business leader optimism under pressure across eating and drinking-out sector: Business confidence among leaders of Britain’s eating and drinking-out market remains strained, according to the latest edition of the CGA Business Confidenc … view

Business leader optimism under pressure across eating and drinking-out sector: Business confidence among leaders of Britain’s eating and drinking-out market remains strained, according to the latest edition of the CGA Business Confidenc … view

Admiral Taverns reports trading in new financial year ‘ahead of expectations’ as full-year turnover and underlying Ebitda dips: Admiral Taverns has said trading in the early part of its new financial year has been “ahead of expectat … view

Sector like-for-likes up 1.5% in November, London outperforms regions: Britain’s managed pub and restaurant groups saw collective like-for-like sales grow 1.5% in November compared with last year, according to the latest Coffer Peach Bu … view

Sector like-for-likes up 1.5% in November, London outperforms regions: Britain’s managed pub and restaurant groups saw collective like-for-like sales grow 1.5% in November compared with last year, according to the latest Coffer Peach Bu … view

JD Wetherspoon unveils museum plans as part of £7m Wolverhampton development: JD Wetherspoon has unveiled plans for a museum that charts its history as part of a £7m development in Wolverhampton. The company has applied to the city coun … view

The Restaurant Group reports 92% take-up of its rights issue: The Restaurant Group has announced that the 13 for 9 rights issue received valid acceptances in respect of 267,259,143 new ordinary shares, representing approximately 92.02% of … view

Chilango boss – success of bond offer shows we’ve come of age, like-for-likes at 10%, on hunt for marketing director: Eric Partaker, co-founder of Mexican brand Chilango, has told Propel the success of its Burrito Bond 2 offer shows t … view

Time Out Market secures 32,000 square foot Waterloo site: Time Out Group, the media and entertainment business, has signed a conditional lease agreement for a new Time Out Market in London, with planning already granted. The company state … view

Costa leads the way as UK sees greatest European coffee shop expansion in 2018, Brexit casts shadow over 2019: Whitbread-owned Costa Coffee helped the UK lead Europe in coffee shop sector growth in 2018 but Brexit is casting a shadow over … view

Fulham Shore plans to increase restaurant openings: Franco Manca operator Fulham Shore has reported revenues of £33m (2017: £27.5m) for the six months ended 23 September – and a plan to increase openings going forward. Headline Ebitda … view

Electra – we believe TGI Friday’s can provide a strong exit: Electra Private Equity, which is winding down its portfolio, has told shareholders it believes it can achieve a good price for its TGI Friday’s business in due cou … view

Propel launches Leadership Summit, open for bookings: Propel is launching the Leadership Summit, which will see a select group of the sector’s most experienced bosses share their expertise on leadership. The full-day event, in partnersh … view

Casual Dining Group appoints Rooney Anand as chairman: Casual Dining Group (CDG), the operator of almost 300 mid-market restaurant brands including Las Iguanas, Cafe Rouge and Bella Italia, has appointed Rooney Anand as chairman. Anand wi … view

City Pub Group to make first move into experiential sector with crazy golf and street food stalls at former Wetherspoon pub in Cambridge: City Pub Group, led by Clive Watson, is to make its first move into the experiential sector by turni … view

Turtle Bay UK operations director steps down: Karen Turton, UK operations director of Caribbean restaurant Turtle Bay, has stepped down, Propel has learned. Turton joined Turtle Bay, which is backed by private equity firm Piper, in March … view

Patty & Bun in talks over further London sites, ‘new project’ to launch outside capital next year: Joe Grossman, founder of better burger brand Patty & Bun, has told Propel the company is in discussions over further London sites and i … view

Nando’s reports sales near £1bn: Nando’s has reported sales rose £121.4m to £969.3m in the year to 25 February 2018 (2017: £847.9m), an increase of 14.3%. Operating profit decreased to £42.8m from £46.7m the year before “large … view

Time Out secures management contract to run Time Out Market in Prague: Time Out Group, the global media and entertainment business, has entered into a management agreement with CRESTYL Group to open a new Time Out Market in Prague, the ca … view

Restaurant numbers fall 2% although managed groups continue to grow, total of licensed premises down 3.2%: The number of restaurants in Britain fell 2.0% during the year to September 2018 although managed groups continued to grow, the lat … view

Restaurant numbers fall 2% although managed groups continue to grow, total of licensed premises down 3.2%: The number of restaurants in Britain fell 2.0% during the year to September 2018 although managed groups continued to grow, the lat … view

Patisserie Holdings hires interim chief financial officer: Patisserie Holdings has hired Nick Perrin as interim chief financial officer. The company stated: “Perrin is an experienced and successful finance director, most recently of AIM … view

Just Eat reports record UK order numbers, reaches 100,000 restaurant partners globally, GBK joins line-up: Online food delivery business Just Eat has reported record UK order numbers and revealed it has reached more than 100,000 restauran … view

Pret pilots full ingredient labelling: Pret A Manger is trialling full ingredient labelling at its store in Victoria as part of its pledge to better protect people with allergies. The company has vowed to “drive change” in the industr … view

NPD Group reveals five eating out trends that will shape the industry in 2019: Insights firm The NPD Group has identified five new trends that will shape Britain’s £56bn out-of-home (OOH) foodservice industry in 2019. The company said … view

Patisserie Valerie’s former marketing boss makes £325,000 claim against the company over unpaid bonuses: The Times has reported that the former marketing head of Patisserie Valerie is suing the company for £325,000 in a claim over the … view

Facebook methodology change leads to increased market share of reviews: Facebook’s polarised methodology change in August is now translating to increased usage across the platform, according to new statistics from Feed It Back’s month … view