US fast-food workers campaign for higher wages goes global: The fast-food worker movement for higher pay in the US is to go global with strikes in 23 countries on 15 May. Workers from dozens of countries on six continents are joining the campaign for higher pay and worker rights on the day, it was announced yesterday at a press conference outside a McDonald’s restaurant in Midtown Manhattan by Fast Food Forward, which represents US fast-food workers. The 15 May strike date mirrors the $15 per hour pay that US fast-food workers are demanding. “We’ve gone global,” Ashley Cathey, a McDonald’s worker from Memphis, Tennessee, who earns $7.75 an hour after six years, told a news agency. “Our fight has inspired workers around the world to come together.” President Obama has called on Congress to raise the national minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour this year, and earlier this year signed an executive order to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for individuals working on new federal service contracts. Earlier this week, workers and union leaders from dozens of countries met for the first global meeting of fast-food workers, organised by the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers’ Associations, a federation comprised of 396 trade unions in 126 countries representing 12 million workers. In the US, strikes are expected to include the first walkouts in Philadelphia, Sacramento, Miami and Orlando. Outside the US, the protests are expected to include protests in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South America and Central America. Some of the foreign protesters say they are taking action specifically in sympathy with US workers. Louise Marie Rantzau, who is a McDonald’s worker in Denmark, says she earns $21 an hour. She says she was surprised to hear how little US workers earn and she says is “committed” to supporting their cause.

   

James Eyre to present at the Propel Multi Conference on 3 July: James Eyre, founder of the Lifestyle Hospitality Group, will present at the Propel Multi Club Conference on Thursday 3 July. He will talk about how the company’s Tiger Bill’s concept was created and then successfully developed as a franchise offer in the UK and overseas. The Propel Multi Club Conference will be followed by the Propel summer party in the evening and is now open for bookings – operators can claim two free places each. A full-day conference will be followed by the summer party, to include go-karting, a BBQ, the top live covers band the All Stars (which includes Simply Red’s guitarist and Rod Stewart’s bass player) and karaoke. To secure places or get more information, email Jo Charity on jo.charity@propelinfo.com.

   

Three new operators join the ALMR: Three new operators have joined the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR), bringing total membership to 170 companies operating 14,000 pub, bars and restaurants. New members are the seven-strong premium bar operator Drake and Morgan, the four-outlet Sports Bar & Grill, and Windmill Taverns Group, which sells Thai and English cuisine at four South of England sites. The ALMR said: “This reaffirms our position as the UK’s leading trade body campaigning for the interests of the licensed retail sector.”

   

The Guardian – The Sun’s PizzaExpress halal story is half-baked: A Guardian columnist has criticised The Sun’s front-page story on PizzaExpress serving only halal chicken. Hugh Muir wrote: “The newspaper has used the restaurant chain’s business decision to whip up another story about ethnic minorities. Customers like to know what they are eating. But even then, this isn’t the horror The Sun would have us believe. Within hours of publication, the Media Blog had pointed to reports as far back as last September in this newspaper and The Independent citing the pizza chain’s use of halal-approved chicken. The chain tweeted about it in 2012 and proclaims it on its website.”

   

Almost 90 Medway restaurants in need of serious improvement: Nearly 90 food businesses in the Medway area of Kent are in need of serious improvement, according to the Food Standards Agency (FSA). Seven have been given the lowest possible rating of zero, which means they need urgent improvement, and have had to stop trading. But there are almost 60 more requiring “major improvement” and a further 23 businesses for which “improvement is necessary”. The Medway Messenger has obtained the figures after a succession of grim headlines detailing restaurants overrun with cockroaches and mice. A total of 87 businesses in Medway are not up to scratch, which is around 11% of the 767 premises rated by the FSA.

    

UK sales grow for Papa John’s but cheese price inflation holds back profit: The pizza restaurant chain Papa John’s has reported 6.4% like-for-likes in its international division, including the UK, for first quarter of 2014, while like-for-like sales in the United States rose by 9.6%. Commodity inflation ate into profit growth, and the chain’s $19.3m net income was essentially unchanged from the first quarter of 2013. During the most recent quarter, the market price for cheese, the brand’s biggest commodity, averaged $2.21 per pound, up by a third compared with $1.66 per pound a year earlier.

   

Everards wins prestigious Camra award for its Project William scheme: The Leicester brewer and retailer Everards has won Camra’s prestigious Bill Squires Award for its Project William work supporting microbrewers, championing cask ale and reviving pubs. It is the first time the award has been presented in ten years. Presenting the award at Nottingham’s Sir John Borlase Warren pub, Camra’s East Midlands regional director, Carl Brett, said: “We have seen Project William develop and grow right across our region. We see how this scheme supports microbrewers and gives pub customers a fantastic choice of local ales in pubs that may not still be going without it. Our members felt that this commitment needed to be recognised.” Everards’ chairman, Richard Everard, said: “This award will take pride of place in the brewery. We are passionate about great pubs and great beer and Project William gives us an opportunity to deliver both for local communities.”

   

Golden Lion Group opens rotisserie concept in Brighton: The Brighton bar and restaurant operator Golden Lion Group, led by Dave and Leo Day, has opened a rotisserie and craft beer concept, Crafty Chooks, on the site of the former Tin Drum on Second Avenue in Brighton. The new outlet specialises in local free-range chicken and a selection of craft beers. The website says: “With a diverse choice of beers from the UK and overseas, an enticing wine list and a quirky range of top notch cocktails, the Crafty Chook brings you a contemporary open plan bar-restaurant, taking on board the modern trend for rotisserie chickens, along with a varied food and drinks menu.” Golden Lion Group, founded 30 years ago and a founder member of the ALMR, operates sites in Brighton including The Cricketers and Hove Place.

   

McDonald’s to become largest book distributor in the UK with Kobo deal: McDonald’s planned Happy Meal free book promotion with Kobo, the e-reader and e-book company, will make the company the UK’s largest distributor of books. Until 17 June, McDonald’s will be offering a code for a free e-book and an additional voucher on the side of a Happy Meal box for a £1 print book or e-book series. Happy Meal customers will get books by Enid Blyton from the Secret Seven and Famous Five series. McDonald’s will sell around 15 million Happy Meals in the UK during the time of the promotion, which will make them the biggest children’s book distributor in the country this year.

   

Snug to open sixth site in Hitchin: Snug, the company formerly known as Snug Bars and headed by Giles Fry, will launch its sixth site in Hitchin, Hertfordshire next week (Friday 16 May) in premises in Sun Street formerly occupied by Bar Absolute. The Snug brand is conceptualised to the consumer as “your local, reinvented”, and has seen consistent growth since its launch in 2004. It turned a profit during the financial downturn and established a winning consumer formula along the way. Fry said: “We are thrilled to be launching the sixth Snug and its premium Cocktail and Kitchen offering to Hitchin. The Snug has gone from strength-to-strength in its five other locations since we first launched ten years ago, we obviously hope to build on that success with plans to open 15 Snugs over the next five years.”

   

Kout Food Group to add another Burger King: The Kuwaiti-owned Kout Food Group is adding another Burger King site to its 78-strong Little Chef estate, acquired last year for £15m. The new Burger King is set to open at the Black Cat Roundabout on the A1 in Chawston, Bedfordshire. Kout acquired its first Burger King franchise in the UK in 2006. Last week, Propel reported that a Burger King is to be open by Kout inside a Little Chef on the A12 at Feering, near Colchester in Essex. Last year, Kout Food Group also bought the Costa franchisee South West Coffee in a deal worth circa £3m. The company sold its stake in Maison Blanc for £8.3m in December last year.

   

Hannah Bass to join Selfridges: Hannah Bass, who has worked in senior roles at ETM Group and Hakkasan, has stepped down from Richard’s Caring’s Grillshack and Jackson and Rye concepts to become director of restaurants at Selfridges. The former chief executive of Benito’s Hat, Graham Ford, will take over from Bass at the end of May. Bass launched Grillshack along with chef Mark Askew in Beak Street, Soho, Central London last year with a second site set to open in Ealing, West London this summer. Jackson & Rye opened in Soho and will expand to a second site in Chiswick, West London next month.

   

Simon Rogan opens at Claridges: Chef Simon Rogan has opened his new restaurant, Fera, at Claridges in Mayfair, London. Rogan, whose transformation of The French at the Midland hotel in Manchester featured in the recent BBC series Restaurant Wars, has taken over from Gordon Ramsay, whose last service was last June. Rogan tweeted: “I hope you all like it. A little bit nervous!”

   

AB InBev reports UK volume growth in the first quarter of 2014: Stella Artois brewer AB InBev has reported that global revenue grew by 8.9% in the first quarter of this year. The company said: “This result was due to growth in total volumes of 4.4%, with revenue per hectolitre also growing by 4.4%, driven by our revenue management and premiumisation initiatives. On a constant geographic basis, revenue per hectolitre grew by 5.7%. Our own beer volumes grew by 4.5%, driven by volume growth in all four of our top markets, while non-beer volumes grew by 3%.” Of UK performance, Inge Plochaet, business unit president at AB InBev UK, said: “The year has got off to a strong start, with volumes up 0.6% in the UK and Budweiser continuing to perform particularly well. We are looking forward to building on these results in the next quarter, with Budweiser as the official beer sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2014.”

   

Mitch Tonks to operate pop-up in Bristol: Chef and restaurant owner Mitch Tonks has joined forces with First Great Western to launch a pop-up eaterie at Temple Meads station in Bristol. The event is taking place this Saturday and is based on the experience of dining on a Pullman train. People taking part will get the opportunity to sample a five-course, silver service meal. The pop-up restaurant will be hidden away under the arches at Bristol Temple Meads. Tonks said: “We have some of the finest produce in the world, but the food and farming community took a beating this winter, so this is the perfect opportunity to show we are definitely open for business.”

   

Urban Leisure Group acquires seventh site: Urban Leisure Group has acquired a seventh site, Kench and Bibsley on Long Lane, Covent Garden, Central London, through the property agent Cedar Dean Gilmarc. The company is understood to be planning to re-open the site with an offer similar to its Elgin site in Maida Vale, West London, which offers fresh specialist coffees, homemade food, an extensive wine list and a growing range of craft beers.

   

Joule’s Brewery to launch craft lager – and invites InBev to debate definition of craft: Joule’s Brewery, based in Market Drayton, Shropshire, is to launch a craft brewed lager on 15 May – and ha invited AB InBev to debate the definition of craft beer. Green Monke is a 4.3% unpasteurised lager which is naturally sparkling and lagered in the old tradition. Joules, the self-styled “smallest lager brewery in the world”, having yet to sell a single drop, has invited AB InBev the biggest brewer in the world to a debate at its headquarters in Market Drayton. The company has written to AB InBev’s head office in Belgium to debate the difference between craft-brewed, unpasteurised lager brewed in small batches in the traditional method and the modern “continuous process” production methods allegedly used by the goliath brewer. Joules’s managing director, Steve Nuttall, said: “We thought it would be good to debate the rise in interest and the definition of ‘craft brewed’ with the biggest brewer in the world with all the resource and technology they have behind them.”

   

Greene King partners with Lifetime Training to create bespoke apprenticeship programme: Following its recent pledge to recruit more than 2,000 apprentices this year, Greene King has appointed Lifetime Training as its new apprenticeship delivery partner and national training provider. Greene King, in partnership with Lifetime Training, will create an innovative training model that offers team members an improved career development journey from entry level roles up to managing a business. With a strong emphasis on customer service, Greene Kings’ new apprenticeship programme will include bespoke qualifications that support a range of job roles including front of house, kitchen and management that are tailored to each of the Greene King retail brands. Through a blend of workplace learning and additional industry masterclasses, apprentices will develop the capabilities and technical skills that will enable them to reach their potential and support Greene King in developing a pipeline of talent for succession planning, new site openings and delivering exceptional customer service.

   

   

Brighton multi-siter fined nearly £11,000: The Brighton-based multi-site operator Pascal Said Madjoudj has been ordered to pay nearly £11,000 after pleading guilty to 16 food hygiene breaches at Brighton Magistrates’ Court. Brighton and Hove Council health inspectors found such a significant build up of grease at Pascal’s Brasserie in Hove that not only was it a hygiene issue but it also posed a fire risk. Among other things, they found dirty brooms hanging from the kitchen ceiling where they could contaminate crockery below. Proceedings against the company previously running the restaurant, Pascals Brasserie Ltd, were withdrawn after it went into voluntary liquidation at the beginning of April. But Madjoudj was successfully prosecuted by the council. During the court hearing, Madjoudj admitted that he ran the brasserie and three La Fourchette restaurants in Brighton and Hove. The district judge ordered him to pay a fine of £8,000 together with £2,800 costs and a £50 victim surcharge, making a total of £10,800.

   

Healthy eating chain Chop’d launches summer menu: The healthy eating chain Chop’d, which has nine outlets around Central and East London, has launched a new summer menu. New dishes include a Thai tofu noodle salad, a seared tuna and summer cous cous and a crayfish, samphire and Jersey Royal potato salad. Managing director Eddie Holmes said: “When it comes to sourcing the most nutritious ingredients around, we are not prepared to compromise and neither should consumers. Good quality, healthy food does not have to cost a fortune, it’s all about making sensible choices. If the price of meat or fish is high, opt for smaller servings complimented with larger portions of in-season vegetables or look at alternatives like tofu, an incredible ingredient which acts like a chameleon, taking on all the flavours within your dish.”

   

Thwaites launches craft can: The Blackburn-based brewer and retailer Thwaites has launched 13 Guns, its American IPA, in a new 330ml can. First brewed to coincide with American Independence Day in 2011, the 5.5% six-hopped beer is already available in cask, Petainer keg and bottles. Lee Williams, Thwaites’s marketing manager, said: “The 330ml can is already a popular pack format in countries where craft beer is more established and we see nothing from our experience to stop the 330ml can taking a foothold here too. As well as the benefits to beer quality from the reduction of light hitting the beer and reduced oxidisation compared to bottles, 330ml cans broaden the appeal to younger craft drinkers, particularly for outdoor events and occasions.”

   

Travelodge increases competition with Premier Inn with £25m ad campaign: Travelodge is to invest £25m into a new marketing campaign with a substantial TV element to highlight its relevance and modern look to customers, Marketing Week has reported. The hotel chain’s chief executive, Peter Gowers, said: “It’s time to start talking to our customers again. Our aim is to become Britain’s favourite hotel for value. We want to tell out customers we have changed and we have thousands of refurbished rooms.” The magazine said: “The advertising will focus on Travelodge’s role as an ‘enabler’ for guests to get out and explore and enjoy the hotel locale and this will be supported by online and social media activity. The advertising, developed by CHI, includes a television spot that will break on 10 May during ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent and introduces the strapline ‘Get Up And Go’. The spots were filmed at four different Travelodge locations and shows opportunities for enjoyable experiences, such as cycling along the Manchester Ship canal. It is the first TV activity for the brand since 2011.”

   

Brewer Sharps teams up with Nathan Outlaw for first pub: The Michelin-starred chef Nathan Outlaw has joined forces with the Cornish brewer Sharp’s at a new pub. The Mariners, in the centre of Rock, Sharp’s home, will reopen this summer after what is being described as a “low key” refurbishment. The opportunity for the brewery’s first pub arose through a conversation between Sharp’s retail and hospitality manager, Ed Hughes and the pub’s previous tenant. Hughes said: “I got a call to say that the Mariners’ lease was coming up and my ears immediately pricked up. We weren’t on a search for our own pub, but the opportunity to take up residence in this iconic pub in our home village was just too good to be true. We gave Nathan a call and he was just as keen as we were. This is the most natural collaboration and it’s all coming together really quickly, but in a really exciting way. We can’t wait to open the doors to our new public house to both the local community and visitors that have supported Nathan Outlaw and ourselves so strongly over the years.” Outlaw said: “I’ve always admired pubs serving no-fuss food, but I wouldn’t have dreamt of opening a pub if it was not for the expertise that Sharp’s Brewery bring.” For the summer opening, the property will undergo low-key refurbishment to make the most of the space and the views out over the Camel estuary. Up to 20 new jobs will be created by the venture. Sharp’s is a subsidiary of Molson Coors.

   

TCG unveils summer menu at Henry’s: The managed pub and bar operator TCG is launching summer menus for its Henry’s Cafe Bar brand later this month, with a number of new dishes based on seasonal produce, lighter ingredients such as chicken and seafood, and on-trend items including feta and haloumi cheese, quinoa and sweet potato. The menu features four new salads, including salmon nicoise and quinoa with sweet potato and avocado, and main courses such as cod with feta cheese and sundried tomato and bauletti – filled pasta parcels. It also offers five sharing boards, including a meat mezze based on harissa-marinated lamb and chicken skewers, and an antipasto mezze with chargrilled vegetables, feta cheese and dips. The dessert offer has also been refreshed to offer lighter, summery flavours in dishes such as mango and passion fruit mess and lemon pie cheesecake. TCG’s chief operating officer, Nigel Wright, said: “The continuing success of the Henry’s Cafe Bar brand is due in large part to its food offer. We refresh it regularly to make sure it meets the demands of the more aspirational customers who frequent the sites and reflects the latest food trends in the casual dining sector, while also keeping our perennial favourites.”

   

La Sala opens Spanish sister site: La Sala, the celebrity-oriented Spanish restaurant that is eyeing openings in Essex in a scheme headed by industry veteran James Horler, has open a beach-front sister site in Marbella, La Sala by the Sea. La Sala by the Sea will offer signature dishes fused with a Thai twist, including Prawns Pil Pil with chilli, A spokesman said: “We are incredibly excited to be opening La Sala by the Sea and looking forward to providing a unique dining experience in what is one of Marbella’s most beautiful locations.”

   

Lidl to demolish former Orchid pub: The supermarket chain Lidl is to demolish the former Orchid-operated Organ and Dragon in Ewell, Surrey. Last year KFC withdrew planning applications for the site of the pub and Thai restaurant, which shut in July 2012. A spokesman for Epsom Council said it had received a “prior approval notification” for demolition by Lidl at the end of February. But as Lidl owns the building, which is not listed or locally listed and is not in a conservation area, it does not need planning permission to demolish it.

    

Subways eyes 8,000 more US stores – and trials hummus: Subway is planning 8,000 more sites in the United States and is testing hummus on its menus. The sandwich chain, which already has more than 26,600 US locations, has room to add 7,000 to 8,000 more domestic eateries, its co-founder and chief executive, Fred DeLuca, said yesterday. “Maybe it will take ten years or so,” he said. “If we do a good job building consumer demand, that number might change and be higher.” DeLuca also disclosed that Subway has started testing hummus as a sandwich topping as it seeks to maintain its appeal among health-conscious consumers.

   

Tesco to close in-store bakeries in favour of Euphorium products: Tesco is to close more than 100 in-store bakeries affecting 600 staff in favour of Euphorium products and concessions. The supermarket chain will open a new bakery in Weybridge, Surrey producing fresh bread and bakery products, as part of its growing Euphorium project. The move will take place across branches in South West London, Surrey and Berkshire. Tesco reported that as many up to 450 jobs will be created at the new site, and 1,000 in total, with positions available as more Euphorium concessions are introduced. A spokesperson for Tesco said: “We already offer Euphorium bakery products in several of our stores in and around London and feedback from customers has been really positive. As part of our programme of creating compelling and enjoyable retail destinations for our customers, we’re going to be introducing the Euphorium range of artisan breads and cakes to more of our stores in the coming months. This programme is creating 1,000 roles, which includes opportunities for our 600 current bakery colleagues to work in the new concessions in stores or at Weybridge.” Meanwhile, the Tesco-owned cafe chain Harris & Hoole has launched its first iced coffee drinks. The new range includes iced mocha and iced latte, iced lemonade and a two-berry smoothie called Blueberry Brekkie. The chain’s head of marketing, Michelle Graham-Clare, said Harris & Hoole wanted to create iced drinks that “stand up against the quality of our coffee”. Last month, Tesco said it was accelerating the provision of food and beverage offers in the coming year, with more than 100 Giraffe, Decks and Harris & Hoole openings planned. The company is expanding its casual dining offer, overseen by the former Mitchells & Butlers chief executive Adam Fowle, as part of a push to enhance the attractiveness of its stores. Fowle has reported that there are 700 Tesco sites that would lend themselves to a food and beverage offer by dint of size. He also told the Propel Multi Site Management Masterclass that he thought that a petrol station environment, of which Tesco operates many, is a good place to be offering breakfast.