Caffe Nero lines up second US opening: Caffe Nero is lining up its second US opening, again in the Boston, Massachusetts area. The coffee chain is preparing to open at 733 Centre Street in the Jamaica Plain area of Boston. Previously, Caffe Nero's director of US operations, Jay Gentile, told the Jamaica Plain News that the cafe “could open before the holidays if all goes smoothly”. According to the article, the new cafe, at the former Commonwealth Bank, space will have 61 seats and outdoor patio seating. In May this year, Caffe Nero opened its first American location, in Boston’s Millennium Place in Downtown Crossing.
 
Nando’s trials sweet potato wedges at ten sites: Nando’s is trialling sweet potato wedges at ten sites in the UK and Ireland. The trial involves five large wedges served for £2.95 with a drizzle of Nando’s creamy coriander and sesame sauce and sprinkled with toasted seeds. For 10p, customers can add peri-peri salt. The trial has been welcomed by customers on Twitter and Instagram. Participating restaurants are Blanchardstown in Dublin, Brighton Marina, Covent Garden, Harlow, Kensington High Street in London, Kettering, Manchester Spinningfields, Putney in London, Stirling in Scotland and Stratford.
 
Anglian Country Inns opens sixth pub: The award-winning pub group Anglian Country Inns (ACI), run by the Nye family, has opened its sixth site, The Cricketers at Weston, North Hertfordshire. ACI intends to focus on real ales and introducing a menu using the best of local ingredients, following on from the success at the Jolly Sailors, Brancaster Staithe, winner of the Best Family Pub in East Anglia title at the Great British Pub Awards earlier this year. The Cricketers will have a similar family appeal and will be headed by Marek Vlk, who has spent the past four years at the Jolly Sailors. Mark Nicholls, who has also been with ACI for the past three years, will be running the kitchen. The site was previously owned by Rhubarb Inns and the freehold has been purchased by the Nye family who will lease it back to ACI, which will run it in its current format before investing in the site to add extra covers and garden development at a later date. James Nye, managing director of ACI, said: “I am very excited about this acquisition. As a family we have known the Cricketers for a long time and very much look forward to seeing the pub once more become a big part of the village community.”

Hotel entrepreneur opens Norwich better burger and waffles restaurant: Entrepreneur Marcus Pearcey, whose family owns the Distinct Hotels group in Norwich, has opened a new burger and waffle bar in the city on the site of a former Bella Italia outlet. The 7 Heaven Burger and Waffle Company in Exchange Street in Norwich is named for the " seven great burgers and seven great waffles" it offers, according to Pearcey. stripped-back urban and industrial interior, complete with chip-wood, metal pipes providing wall lighting, and kitchen rolls on table tops instead of napkins. Pearcey said the sparse design of the restaurant is because “it should be about the food”, which should not be overwhelmed by the venue. Elly Montgomery, a director of the new venture, said the interior reflected the restaurant’s relaxed approach: “We want it to be relaxed, informal, fun and family oriented. We thought it would be quite unique to have a number, and everything for us is linked to ‘seven’. We have based our menus all around seven. Everyone loves a burger and everyone loves a waffle, so we put them together. It works.” The menu has seven types of burgers, seven savoury waffles, seven sweet waffles, and seven minis for the children’s menu. The restaurant will be open seven days a week, from breakfast to dinner. Distinct Hotels runs the Oaklands Hotel and Restaurant and Oaklands Court, as well as an operation called Roast to Go, which home-delivers roast meals.
 
Gresham Inns sells Eagle in Ladbroke Grove to new operator: The Eagle pub in Ladbroke Grove, West London has been sold by Gresham Inns to a new operator, Tim Colley, for his first private venture after 12 years working in the hospitality sector, most recently for the Zetter Group. The sale is a strategic disposal by Gresham Inns, the London multiple headed by Will Clayton, to allow it to develop its existing sites as well as focusing on new acquisitions, including House of Wolf in Islington, North London. The three-storey end of terrace public house, which was bought by Gresham Inns last year, and sold through Davis Coffer Lyons off an asking price of £145,000, has a 1,436 sq ft open plan ground floor trading area with large island bar server with an open trade kitchen behind and outdoor seating to the front. Its private accommodation includes seven bedrooms with separate access to the street. This is the third transaction in the area that has been completed by Davis Coffer Lyons over the past six months following successes at the Pelican on All Saints Road and the former Clarendon on Clarendon Road. Chris Bickle, an associate director at Davis Coffer Lyons, said: “The slow but steady creep of gentrification along Golborne Road from Pizza East to the shadows of Trellick Towers, and premiums and rents being achieved in the established hot spots of trendy Notting Hill, has increased interest in the northern end of Portobello Road and wider Ladbroke Grove area. The Eagle sits in a prominent position that also benefits from a catchment area extending north to Kensal Green and Kensal Rise.” Colley has been working as a manager at the Zetter Hotel & Townhouse in Clerkenwell.
 
Harvey Nichols sees sales down, profit up at Oxo Tower and Prism: The Harvey Nichols group saw turnover at its two stand-alone restaurant operations in London, the Oxo Tower on the South Bank and Prism in the City, fall 6% to £14.04m in the 52 weeks to 30 March 2014, from £14.55m in 2013. However, operating profit was up 27% to £2.56m from £2.02m. The figures were revealed in a filing at Companies House by the store group's parent, Broad Gain (UK). Overall, profits at the Knightsbridge-based operation fell from £13m to £10.7m pre-tax in the yeas as sales fell 3% from £90m to £87.5m. Some of Harvey Nichols' regional stores, in Leeds, Edinburgh and Manchester, saw sales fall by 7%. The regional division made a pre-tax loss of £490,000, a turnaround from a profit of £3.3m last year. Broad Gain (UK) saw pre-tax profits fall from £14.5m to £7.9m.
 
Exclusive Hotels sees sales rise 9%: The Exclusive Hotels Collection, which runs two Michelin-starred restaurants, Michael Wignall at the Latymer in Surrey and The Pass at the South Lodge Hotel in West Sussex, has reported a 9% rise in sales from £42m to £45.8m in the year to 26 March 2014, with ebitda from £7.6m to £9.2m. Accounts for Manor House Hotel (Castle Combe), which operates as the ultimate parent for the four hotels in the group, show pre-tax profit for the period jumped up from £2.9m to £4.6m at the business which employed 663 staff by the year-end. In a review accompanying the accounts, managing director Danny Pecorelli said a focus on strong relationships with its corporate bookers and the quality of the group's leisure and food and beverage offerings had underpinned its success. The hotels in the group are Pennyhill Park, an AA five red star establishment in Bagshot, Surrey incorporating a spa and nine-hole golf course, South Lodge, near Horsham, Lainston House on the outskirts of Winchester and the Manor House, near Bath. The group, which also operates two golf courses, said the fine dining options within its portfolio allowed it to stand out from the competition.
 
Chatime to open ninth site in Birmingham, first outside London: Chatime, specialising in authentic Taiwanese bubble teas, will open its ninth UK store in Birmingham this month. The store, in the Bullring Shopping Centre, will offer eight different styles of bubble tea, with 63 varieties and eight different topping options. Peter Wong, founder of Chatime UK, said: “We are delighted to be launching our first Midland store in one of the busiest shopping malls in the UK just before Christmas. This is one of our first steps into expanding outside of London and we look forward to introducing our delicious bubble teas to both locals and visitors to the City of Birmingham.”
 
Founder steps down as MD at Saltaire Brewery: Tony Gartland, the founder and managing director of Saltaire Brewery in Yorkshire, which supplies more than 300 pubs in the North of England, is stepping down after 10 years. The new MD is Ewen Gordon, who joined the brewery four years ago within sales and recently became sales director. Gartland, a former Leeds solicitor, started Saltaire Brewery with Derek Todd, whom he met at Sunderland University’s Brewlab in 2004. Todd remains as director of brewing and will work with Gordon to deliver the brewery’s ambitious growth plans for 2015. Saltaire recently obtained planning permission for a new milling and packaging hall, which will allow an increase in production from 720 to 1,100 casks a week. It also recently opened a new bar, the Brewery Tap, based at the brewery on Shipley’s Dockfield Works, which fronts onto the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. Gartland remains the owner of the business and will continue to oversee its strategic direction, as well as being involved in future product development. He said: “It seems strange to be stepping back at such an exciting time for the business, but we have always been in a state of rapid growth and I know the day-to-day running of the company is in very capable hands. The team at Saltaire are very proud of what they have achieved to date and I will make sure they are well set for the next phase of the Saltaire Brewery story. The past ten years have been a combination of hard work combined with amazing experiences. From Derek and me brewing the first Saltaire pint to planning a brewing facility capable of four million pints a year, it has been a fantastic journey.”

Investment company Abiica acquires another pub, looks for more: The Northamptonshire-based property investment company Abiica has acquired another pub for its portfolio, and revealed it is looking for more. Abiica has bought the Crown, on High Street in West Haddon, Northamptonshire, which has now reopened its doors after undergoing a comprehensive makeover to revitalise its restaurant and bar area. Greans West Haddon, a newly formed management company, will take over the day-to-day operations of the pub. James Robertson, managing partner, of Abiica, said: “West Haddon is a lovely village and we see a lot of potential to strengthen the venue’s offering within the local community. We really want to ensure that the pub remains at the centre of the community which is why we have worked really hard over the last couple of months to revitalise the bar area including installing new carpets and giving the walls a fresh lick of paint.' Abiica already owns the Duke's Head in Great Yarmouth and the former Harecastle Hotel in Kidsgrove, Staffordshire, currently run as a cafe, and Robertson told Propel he was looking to acquire other pub properties.
 
Team behind original Everyman Bistro to open new venue: The team behind the original Everyman Bistro in Liverpool, led by Paddy Byrne, is to open a new venue next door to the Everyman Theatre. The original bistro opened in 1970 at the theatre, and became a popular eating-out establishment in the city. It closed when the theatre closed for a complete rebuild in 2011, and when the Everyman reopened earlier this year the new bistro operation was handed over to the catering company BaxterStorey. Now Byrne, together with its old chef Tom Gill and general manager Rob Mawdsley, is opening Pen Factory in The Annexe, the building directly next door to the theatre. Byrne said: “It’s the same ethos we always had – everyone is welcome. We are carrying over the same exceptional products, the same style of food. We will offer good food at fair prices and we hope it will be a convivial meeting place where people can come for a drink, stay for a snack if they want or have a full meal, meeting people while they are there. There will be six cask beer pumps rather than the old four. We don’t have a tie, so we can choose beers that are recognised for excellence. We have chosen a good range of wines that are served by the glass too, and there’s a great coffee machine and teas, so we hope we have something for everyone.” Head chef Gill said: “We have the salads and the quiches. We’ve added some new elements, such as the smaller plates, but the heart of it is still there. We have better facilities, so things are possible here that we couldn’t do before. But we haven’t changed the spirit or the prices, really. Salads will still be about a fiver, with main courses going up to £12. It’s important to us to give good value for money.” The team are hoping to be open next week, but are planning a “softer than marshmallow launch” and are asking customers to be patient while they fix any teething troubles. Byrne said: “There will be lessons learnt early on, I know. But I will be here to listen and to learn.”
 
Theatre-themed cafe to open on Shaftesbury Avenue: A theatre-themed cafe is to open early next year on Shaftesbury Avenue in the heart of London's theatreland. opposite the Queen’s Theatre, and will open on January 12. According to the couple behind the operation, Jill and Joe Davey, who own London Theatre Bookings, a ticket agency, the Theatre Cafe “will be a place where you can sit in a comfortable environment, purchase refreshments and chat to the staff about the various shows on in London”. There will be iPads on the cafe’s tables allowing customers to search productions and book tickets, while watching clips and listening to tunes from the shows. West End shows including Wicked and The Lion King are lending items to decorate the walls. Ryan Coyle-Woods, London Theatre Bookings’ head of sales and marketing, said: “We are creating something totally unique and fun for the industry. The feedback we have received from shows and producers is really positive. We are looking forward to working with all shows and venues in London to create exciting promotions using this new space. We want people to feel relaxed in the Theatre Cafe and use it to find the right show for them, while having a coffee and listening to a show tune.”

New ramen noodle concept set to open in West End: A new authentic Japanese ramen noodle concept is to launch its first restaurant at 5 Panton Street in London. The new restaurant which will be trading as MUGA will replace family friendly English cuisine offering The West End Kitchen, in the heart of London’s theatre and cinema district. MUGA plans an open-dining style Japanese theme dining bar and restaurant, in the ground floor and basement 1,657 sq ft property. It has taken an assignment of a 20-year lease which expires in 2017. It is understood that the team behind MUGA, which includes a director at Mayfair Japanese restaurant Nagomi, would like to open further branches in areas like Soho, Shoreditch, Chelsea, Camden and the City. Sally French who advised on the deal acting for The West End Kitchen said: “MUGA will be a great addition to London’s diverse Asian food offering. Tonkotsu, Bone Daddies and most recently Ippudo have proved authentic ramen noodles dishes are here to stay. This is a great location which is set to benefit from the massive investment of the Crown Estate which has been regenerating this swathe of London.”

Lincoln restaurateur to double up with charcoal grill opening: Lincoln restaurateur Amador Abruneiras is to open his second site on the site of an Indian restaurant called Castlegate, close to Lincoln Castle’s West Gate. He will open Tito’s Restaurant and Grill in the middle of December. It comes after his traditional Spanish tapas restaurant Ole Ole which opened in August 2013. He said: “When I thought about a concept, the same way I did with Ole Ole, I tried to think about where there was a gap in the market. It’s not just going to be a grill, it’s going to be a restaurant with international cuisine and I have a team of very special chefs that I really believe in. The menu will have an eclectic mix of meats, fish, pasta and one of our specialities will be chateaubriand steak. I’d love eventually to open another Ole Ole, I think we really have a formula that works and our phone is like a hotline. More weekends and certainly until January we are fully booked.”
 
Rehab Warehouse team to open new nightclub in Coventry: The team behind the Rehab warehouse venue in Coventry is to open a new nightclub called Society this Saturday (6 December). It will open its doors on the site of one of the city’s oldest and best-known nightspots, the old Pink Parrot building in Tower Street, city centre. The site has housed many different clubs over the years since the 1970s including Tamango's, The Pink Parrot and Ko Poda. John Dawkins, who is part of the team running Society, said: “Having Society in the middle of the ring-road is a way to get people back into the city centre. We’re giving a heart beat back to the city. We’ve acquired a massive building which is a hidden jewel in the city. The way we’ve designed the interior of the club hopefully will bring together those people who like a nightclub and those who enjoy the warehouse feel.” Rehab Warehouse, in Bishop Street, was closed last May. The Society building opened as a nightclub in the early 1970s and was known as Tamango’s before becoming the Pink Parrot in the late 1980s. The club was famous for its sunken dancefloor and adjoining VIP club Cleopatra’s upstairs. It lasted as a 1,400 capacity venue until the late 1990s.
 
Tom Kerridge – we’re completely booked up for a year: Tom Kerridge, the UK’s only pub chef to hold two Michelin stars at his Hand and Flowers pub in Marlow, Buckinghamshire has reported he is completely booked up for the next year after a move to make the venue more accessible back-fired. He told The Times: “With most restaurants you can only book two months in advance. Which means that if you wanted to get a table for your anniversary or something, you would have to ring up first thing on the day two months before to guarantee a table. Restaurants like Le Gavroche and the Waterside inn are do popular that it can be impossible to get a table when you want. I thought that if I extended the booking for 12 months in advance then people wouldn’t have this problem. As it is, and I am very humbled by it, it’s just meant we are completely booked up for that whole year.”
 
Multi-million pound Amanzi set to open in Liverpool: A multi-million pound restaurant called Amanzi, which will offer classic dishes with Asian fusion: is set to open on in Liverpool on 12 December. It will occupy the site of the former Newz Bar in Water Street, which closed down earlier this year after first opening its doors in 2000. Riad Erraji, operating partner of Amanzi, said: “We’re really pleased to be breathing life back into the former Newz Bar, which was once at the heart of Liverpool’s nightlife. Following the multi-million pound refurbishment, we’ve put this Water Street address firmly on the map, creating a sophisticated, modern venue which will appeal to all those in this city and beyond who want to dine in style.” The restaurant will offer valet parking and a team of top chefs has been recruited to run the venue. Other Amanzi restaurants are being planned in Dubai and the United States.

Pub operators to go multi-site after Bradford craft beer venue gets go-ahead: The owner of the Boathouse in Saltaire, Jas Bhatt and Kathy O’Brien has won planning consent to convert a Victorian listed building in Bradford’s North Parade into a new bar called The Beerhouse. Bradford Council has granted planning permission to change the ground floor of the Table Decor furnishing shop into the new craft beer pub, which will also offer traditional food. Work on the conversion will start in January, with the venue due to open at the end of February, creating about 30 new jobs. It is one of a number of new ventures springing up in North Parade and the surrounding area. The Record Cafe, a charcuterie deli, real ale and craft beer cafe and vinyl record shop, opened in the street last month, and a plan for an independent micro-cinema has been lodged with Bradford Council. Meanwhile, around the corner contractors have started transforming the historic Shaw’s Moisture Metres factory, off Westgate, into Bradford Brewery and Brewfactory.
 
Whitbread withdraws from £5m Premier in plan for Ambleside: The University of Cumbria is going back to the drawing board after Whitbread pulled out of plans to open a £5 million Premier Inn in Ambleside, Cumbria with 30 new jobs. The university had hoped to sell the Hill Top property to Whitbread to help bankroll its £10 million redevelopment of its estate as it prepares to welcome 500 students next year. But Whitbread has walked away from developing the historic building after conservation issues were raised. The company decided it was not commercially viable going ahead and will now seek another site in the Lake District town. The hotel giant had been planning to open a 60-room hotel near The Struggle with a 65-space car park.
 
Burger King appoints new Europe-wide agency: Burger King has appointed Vizeum to handle the bulk of its European media planning and buying account, estimated to be worth £60m, The Drum has reported. The agency, part of Dentsu Aegis Network, has won the consolidated media account across nine markets including the UK and Ireland, after a four-way pitch understood to involve incumbent Starcom Mediavest Group (SMG), Initiative and GroupM. The Drum reported that the UK billings will be around £11m for 2015. Alongside the UK and Ireland, it has won Austria, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Spain a d Switzerland. It is understood that SMG has retained the Nordics markets, which weren’t part of the review.
 
Admiral Taverns backs global day of giving: The community pub company Admiral Taverns has become the first national pub company to throw its weight behind a campaign that promotes a global day of giving known as #GivingTuesday, the success of which has seen it described as a social media phenomenon. Admiral is encouraging its pubs to get behind the campaign, which is coming to the UK for the first time this year, today, Tuesday, 2 December .The global campaign was launched two years ago in the United States as a counter-balance to the start of the festive shopping season, coming in the wake of heavily-promoted retail days such as "Black Friday" (28 November) and "Cyber Monday" (1 December). Admiral is one of 600 organisations in the UK to back Giving Tuesday, which brings together businesses, charities and individuals to undertake generous and charitable deeds, both online and at special events around the country. Admiral's chief executive, Kevin Georgel, said: “Many of our pubs are engaged in charitable events throughout the year, but this is a perfect opportunity for our licensees to highlight their fantastic work in raising millions for charities, and to strengthen their community ties by acting as a hub for a co-ordinated campaign such as this.”?
 
Hall & Woodhouse hires new agency for Badger account: The brewer and retailer Hall & Woodhouse has appointed Joint as the creative agency of record for its Badger ales brands after a competitive pitch. Joint will create advertising and marketing activity for the Badger range of beers, which includes Tanglefoot, Fursty Ferret, Golden Champion and Golden Glory. Damon Collins and Richard Exon, the co-founders of Joint, said: "From the first time we met the people at Hall & Woodhouse, we knew we wanted to work with them. They are as passionate about their business as we are about ours. We can’t wait to get started." Collins and Exon founded Joint in 2012 with Lori Meakin and Nik Upton. The agency works with brands including TSB, Google and Amazon.
 
Perth, Australia claims Krispy Kreme opening day record: Krispy Kreme’s new store in Perth, Australia has claimed a world record for the most sales on the opening day. It sold 73,200 doughnuts between 9.30am and midnight. The Whitford City store made 90,000 doughnuts in preparation for the opening day
 
New brewery seeks to raise £70,000 start-up cash through crowdsourcing: A new brewery looking to start up in Belfast is seeking to raise the £70,000 it needs through crowdsourcing. Brewer Matthew Dick has launched a community share scheme to open Boundary Brewing in the Holywood Arches area of east Belfast. The company has paid a £3,800 deposit on a brewing system from Hooded Ram brewery in the Isle of Man and is looking to get it over to Belfast early 2015. Dick, who has been working for the Northern Ireland brewing technology firm Brewbot, said: "We are a brewery that is run and owned by its members. The co-operative is a democratic way to do business. Once the brewery becomes profitable, members can expect to receive a paid dividend plus their say in how the business is run." Shares in the company are available for a minimum investment of £100 and a maximum of £20,000. There are now 15 microbreweries in Northern Ireland, a three-fold increase on a decade ago.
 
Oakman Inns signs first Greene King lease: Oakman Inns & Restaurants has taken on its first Greene King lease, at the Navigation Inn at Cosgrove, overlooking the Grand Union canal just north of Milton Keynes. Both companies are making what they are calling a "substantial" joint investment to give the pub a complete and "sympathetic" refurbishment to all area, including re-building some parts. The Navigation is expected to re-open in spring 2015. Peter Borg-Neal, chief executive and founder of Oakman Inns, said: “We were looking for a new destination site and the Navigation is ideal. Canal-side, it is a fantastic location and will be a really excellent addition to our current mix of inns. Greene King has demonstrated its flexibility by agreeing to grant a 25-year lease and thereby enabling us to make a substantial capital investment. We believe this pub is bursting with potential and are excited by its prospects. It has been a very positive experience working with the Greene King team so far.” Clive Chesser, business unit director for Greene King Pub Partners, said: “At Greene King we actively seek to attract the best in the business. Oakman Inns’ enormously successful track record of running first-rate pubs is well respected in the industry and it is with a great deal of pride and pleasure that we enter this partnership.” Oakman now controls 12 pubs from Oxfordshire to Essex, with nine open and running and three, the Navigation, the Kings Head, Chipping Ongar and The White Hart, Ampthill, due to be open by next spring.

Former M&B marketing director joins Harrison: Ian Dunstall, the former director of marketing at Mitchells & Butlers, has joined the leisure hospitality designer Harrison, the company that masterminding the development of the All Bar One brand for M&B. Dunstall is joining Harrison's new specialist brand strategy and development division, along with a former Diageo and Allied Domecq sales and marketing specialist, Steve Abbott. Harrison's managing director and founder, Philip Harrison, said: “We are not paying lip service to the strategic side of brand design, this is a serious investment in talent. Ian and Steve have both worked in the leisure hospitality sector for over 25 years, covering the development and marketing of brands such as Toby Carvery, Miller & Carter and Pizza Hut. Their experience is both extensive and international, covering over 30 markets on six continents. we are extremely pleased – and very fortunate – to be able to combine our very relevant and focused skills and knowledge and pass them onto our clients." Harrison employs 40 full-time designers, architects and project managers in offices in both the UK and the United States, handling clients including Nando’s, YO! Sushi, TGI Friday’s, Giraffe and Pizza Hut.