Chopstix sees runway for 500-plus UK stores by 2028, on its way to becoming ‘largest Asian-inspired QSR brand in Europe’: Fast-growing quick service restaurant brand Chopstix has said it sees a runway for 500-600 UK stores by 2028 and is on its way to becoming “the largest Asian-inspired QSR brand in Europe”. The brand is on course to pass the 100-store mark by the end of its financial year, according to Aaron Moore-Saxton, who was appointed as the company’s franchise director earlier this year. Speaking at the Restaurant & Takeaway Innovation Expo 2022, Moore-Saxton said: “We’ll have 100 stores by the end of the year, and next year, just with franchise partners, we can deliver another 15 or 20. As we build partnerships with more franchise partners, which are all in the pipeline, that runway of stores will build to become 50 by the year after next, 100 the year after. Can Chopstix get to 500 or more across the UK in the next five or six years? We think it absolutely can, and we’re geared to deliver that. And then internationally? Who knows, but there’s a great opportunity. The most exciting thing about coming on board as franchise director in the last few months is the foundations have already been created. Lots of other brands who are on this journey to franchising forget their foundations, think they’ve got a really great brand and can go out and franchise immediately, and don’t have the structure behind them. They don’t have the desire to make the capex model as best value for money as it can be. They don’t have the drive to make it operationally simplistic to ensure the margins are great and give the franchisees the best return on investment. We have all of those things in place, and that will enable the brand to accelerate growth.” Earlier this month, Propel revealed that Chopstix had signed a long-term agreement with Sparta Foods, with the franchisee laying out a growth strategy which will bring a development pipeline of 25 stores over the coming years.

Number of Asian restaurant concepts set to join updated Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies: A number of Asian restaurant concepts are among the 30 new multi-site companies being added to the next edition of the Propel Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies, which will be released on Friday, 28 October, at midday. The updated Propel Multi-Site Database, which is produced in association with Virgate, features Glasgow sushi and ramen restaurant Maki and Ramen, founded by Teddy Lee, which opened its debut site in Glasgow’s Bath Street, and is to open a new venue in the city’s Renfield Street for its second site. Also added this month is Chinese concept Xiongqi Hotpot, which is led by Yanbo Yang, and operates six branches, some of which are franchises, around England – in London’s Charing Cross, Birmingham, Coventry, Manchester, Sheffield and Southampton. In addition, Adam Papa and Alastair Burgess, the co-owners of Happiness Forgets in Hoxton and Ever After in Shoreditch, who have now partnered with Jamie Younger and opened a new south east Asian restaurant in Covent Garden called Sunda Kitchen, will be featured. Premium subscribers will also receive a 2,200-word report on the new additions to the database. The comprehensive database is updated monthly and provides company names, the people in charge, how many sites each firm operates, its trading name and its registered name at Companies House if different. The database now features 2,677 companies. Premium subscribers will also receive the next edition of the New Openings Database on Friday, 4 November, at midday. It focuses on newly announced openings and upcoming launches in the sector and is updated every month. The next edition also includes an 8,000-word report on the new additions to the database. Premium subscribers also receive access to the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book, which is produced in association with Mapal Group, and the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £895 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £445 plus VAT for operators and £545 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription. Subscribers also receive access to Propel’s library of lockdown videos and Friday Wrap interviews and now also have access to a curated video library of the sector’s finest leaders and entrepreneurs, offering their insights on running outstanding businesses in the sector. Premium subscribers also receive their morning newsletter 11 hours early, at 7pm the evening before our 6am send-out; regular video content and regular exclusive columns from Propel group editor Mark Wingett.

 

Cooks Coffee Company targets 200 sites by FY25: Cooks Coffee Company, the international coffee focused cafe chain, believes it can grow to more than 200 sites by FY2025, Propel has learned. Earlier this month, the New Zealand-based company, which operates the Esquires and Triple Two Coffee brands, announced a planned £1.5m fundraising in conjunction with the international cafe chain’s proposed admission on the Aquis Stock Exchange. It also announced plans to grow its UK estate by 10%, as part of plans to reach 120 stores globally by the start of 2023. Cooks Coffee had 111 outlets across the UK, Ireland and its international markets as at the end of September 2022. Esquires Coffee has 50 cafes in the UK and 15 in Ireland, while Triple Two has 20 cafes, with the estate almost doubling in size in the last 12 months. Propel understands cafe sales across the Esquires estate in the UK were up 46.9% in the period April to August 2022, and like-for-like sales were up 2.4% versus 2019. Store sales were up 25.9% and like-for-like sales were up 20.6% from April to August 2021. In terms of Triple Two Coffee, store sales for the April to August period in 2022 were up 77.3% on 2021 and like-for-like sales were up 29.2%. The company said it plans on ending FY23 with 30 Triple Two cafes. Cooks said the capital raise will “facilitate the opening of new outlets, complete near-term acquisitions, and enhance digital functionality and growth”.

Yummy appoints former Punch Pubs MD as non-executive director as it eyes further expansion and new concepts: Our Yummy Collection, formerly Yummy Pub Company, has appointed former Punch Pubs managing director Paul Pavli as non-executive director as it eyes further expansion and new concepts, Propel has learned. This follows a recent rebrand and restructure of the business which saw co-founders Jason Rowlands and Tim Foster leave to pursue different projects. Pavli will now work alongside the remaining founding partner, Anthony Pender, providing the commercial and strategic support that will allow Pender to focus on bringing in new partners. It will also allow Yummy to be an incubator brand, where individuals can own and run their own venues alongside the senior management team. This follows the recent approach adopted at The Victoria Mile End, where operating partner Matthew Ward was the first team member to go from bar to boardroom after starting with the business as a part time teenager. Pender said: “With Paul on board and an already experienced management team, we are in a great space to start innovating and working alongside future partners to develop some interesting venues and concepts. Paul’s experience will also mean we have another mentor for aspiring entrepreneurs we look forward to working alongside in the same way we have with Matt at the Victoria.” Pavli added: “I have been involved in several projects with Anthony over the last few years and have gotten to know Our Yummy Collection well, and have always admired the business. When Anthony asked me to become a non-exec director of his business as it embarks on this new and exciting journey, I jumped at the chance to work with him again.” Yummy earlier this month completed the sale of its flagship pub, The Wiremill near Lingfield in Surrey, to independent family brewer Hall & Woodhouse.

YoooGroup to launch new business park-based cafe concept: Privately funded investment company, YoooGroup, which was founded in 2017 by Benjamin Willmore, is to launch “Bla bla” – a new cafe concept for business parks. The company said it has three sites in the pipeline – in Weybridge, Woking and Bracknell – and an ambition to open five sites by the end of 2023. The company said: “In line with YoooGroup’s ambition for supporting health and well-being for all, ‘Bla bla’ will provide business park users and employees with a healthy, regularly changing menu along with our own blend coffee – providing a one-shop catering solution for business parks that are notoriously under catered for.” Willmore said: “Business parks are in need of a drastic shake-up, the market has changed – quality is in demand. We are supporting landlords in the transformation of business parks. With YoooServ we are creating flexible workspaces with tech-led gyms, bars and quality catering – but we want to go further, which is why we’ve launched Bla bla. This will be a standalone brand that will be open to all. We want to roll these out across business parks in the UK – we have three sites in the pipeline with ambitions to have five open by the end of next year. Service is at the centre of what we do at YoooGroup. Bla bla will rejuvenate the offer in business parks. Long gone are uninspiring cardboard sandwiches. We’ll be working with the catering team to revive lunch, making meals people want to eat and that support health and well-being through quality ingredients.”

 

PizzaExpress gives a free family meal to all 10,000 team members every month: PizzaExpress is giving its 10,000 staff four free pizzas a month, Propel has learned. Employees already dine for free when they are at work, as well as receiving 50% off meals outside of work, including all friends and family dining with the employee. The new initiative is called “On the House”. PizzaExpress stated: “Heating prices are going up, food prices are on the rise and we know it's a challenge for people to eat out at the moment. But at PizzaExpress, we are one big family and it's our duty to make it a happy one. That's why we’re inviting you to bring your loved ones in for a treat by giving you four free Classic pizzas every month to the end of February next year – this one's on the house.” At the beginning of each month, four “On The House” pizza tickets will be added to the employees’ PizzaExpress Club app, which the offer must be redeemed through. The 50% employee discount can still be applied to any other food and drink on the bill, after the free pizza has been applied.

 

Platform lines up second London site: Gaming restaurant/bar concept Platform, which earlier this spring closed a £1.5m equity round led by Actium AG, an investment firm from Zurich, Switzerland, is set to open a second site in London, in Canary Wharf. Propel understands Platform, which opened its debut site in 2019 in Worship Street, Shoreditch, has secured the former Wanyoo site in Canary Wharf Shopping Centre, at Crossrail Place. Earlier this year Platform co-founder Nicolo Portunato told Propel the new funds would be used to acquire more sites across the UK with four more planned by 2025 as well as to enhance partnerships and grow the team. Co-founder Tomaso Portunato added: “You can expect to hear a lot more from us as we continue to expand social gaming across the UK and beyond. The days of stereotypes are coming to an end, and we cannot be prouder to be part of the fresh voices and places that will continue to bring more inclusivity to this industry.” Raven Rose acted on the Canary Wharf deal.

 

Bodean’s founder launches fundraise to back roll out of new subs concept: André Blais, founder of American barbecue diner-deli brand Bodean’s, which operates five sites across London, has finally launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for a planned roll out of his Gerry’s Hot Subs concept. Propel reported earlier this year that Blais was to begin fundraising for the concept, after a successful test pilot period in the Foodstars kitchen in Battersea over the course of 2021. The business has been looking to raise £200,000, which would see it offer up 16.67% of its equity. However, it has now subsequently launched a campaign through Seedrs where it is looking to raise £276,001, offering 18.63% in equity, which gives it a pre-money valuation of £1.2m. It has so far raised almost £188,600 from 26 investors, with 29 days of the campaign left. The dark kitchen unit was launched with a £35,000 seed investment and over its six-month run sold circa 7,000 hot subs. The initial plan for the concept, which offers six and eight-inch subs, was to secure a bricks and mortar site in Soho’s “high-footfall pedestrian area, next to commuter stations”. Longer-term, the business previously said it planned to open 11 sites over the next five years.

 

Zia Lucia to open in Canary Wharf next week for eighth site featuring brand’s first cocktail bar: London-based pizzeria Zia Lucia will open a site in Canary Wharf on Tuesday (25 October), featuring the brand’s first cocktail bar. Founders Gianluca D’Angelo and Claudio Vescovo are launching the 80-cover restaurant – their eighth – on the ground floor of 75 Marsh Wall. It will offer Zia Lucia’s 48-hour slow fermented pizzas such as the Arianna Sbagliata with mozzarella, fresh Italian sausage, gorgonzola, honey and truffle oil. The menu will also comprise a selection of authentic Italian starters, salads and homemade desserts. The bar will offer cocktails and beer. Vescovo said: “Coming from the financial sectors, we have lots of friends, clients and colleagues working and living in the area, and for many years they have asked us to bring Zia Lucia to the neighbourhood. We had been searching for the right venue for at least two years before we fell in love with this location and its water-facing position.” Zia Lucia opened its first site in 2016. The business also operates pasta concept Berto in Islington. 

 

Team behind Peruvian restaurant Andina to launch concept in Middle East next month: The owners of the Peruvian restaurant Andina in London will launch a site in the Middle East under the concept next month. As revealed by Propel earlier this summer, the brand, which is owned alongside sister concept Ceviche by Alex and Saiphin Moore, founders of Rosa’s Thai Café, will open in Dubai’s Marina Gate area. The new venture is being funded via a combination of capital from the existing Andina Ceviche business in London plus investment from seed investors – some of whom were early investors in Rosa’s. Alex Moore told Propel: “The idea would be to expand the Andina brand across the Middle East if we can make this first site fly.” Andina relaunched in Spitalfields last year in Commercial Street, in the former Lupita premises. The Mexican restaurant brand was acquired by the Moores earlier in the same year. The company also operates Ceviche in Frith Street, Soho. David Singleton, of Oraculi, is advising on the brand’s launch in the Middle East.

 

Peel Hotels returns to profit and positive Ebitda, ‘exceeds expectations’ in current financial year: Peel Hotels returned to profit and increased its Ebitda in the year ending 23 January 2022, and added it has “exceeded its own expectations” in the current financial year. The business turned a loss of £10,215,161 in 2021 to a pre-tax profit of £289,260 (2020: profit of £17,898), while Ebitda recovered from a loss of £9,469,943 in 2021 to a profit of £1,275,204. Hotel revenue increased to £9,309,598 from £4,826,379 in 2021 (2020: £15,630,531), while revpar was up 95.1%, with occupancy up 68.0% and average room rate up 16.2%. At the year-end, net debt stood at £7,154,878 (2021: £7,425,342). Gearing on shareholders' funds was 52.2%, with interest coverage at 1.9 times, while net debt decreased by £270,464 compared with the previous year. A total of £626,344 was also spent in capital expenditure, plus £190,297 in insurance capitalising reinvestment at the Caledonian Hotel in Newcastle (2021: £342,000 plus £1,662,840 on Caledonian Hotel). Since the year-end, the company has put The Norfolk Royale Hotel in Bournemouth, The Caledonian Hotel, The Midlands Hotel in Bradford and The George Hotel in Wallingford up for sale. The company said: “We are clear in our strategy, which is to recover our Ebitda lost to covid, and thereafter sell down a proportion of our assets to become debt free in the future. We have exceeded our own expectations in the current financial year, month by month, and we have benefited across the board from staycation and the reluctance of many to put up with the travel hassle understandably caused by covid. The added benefits afforded to us through the reduction of VAT, rates holidays and government grants has added value to our results.” The company also operates The Bull Hotel in Peterborough and The Crown & Mitre Hotel in Carlisle.

 

Hotel group Sandman secures eight-figure refinancing to support growth plans: Hotel group Sandman has secured eight-figure refinancing to help fuel its growth plans. The company has made a series of recent acquisitions to add to its core sites in Newcastle, Gatwick and Aberdeen, with further growth planned. To help it achieve the next phase of growth, Sandman – a family-owned business hailing from Canada – has secured a new funding facility from HSBC. The group is one of the largest privately owned hotel chains in North America – with more than 50 sites in Canada alone. The UK and Ireland business – which has recently added to its portfolio with the Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links in Ireland, as well as a newly acquired site in Sheffield – opened its first UK site in 2011, in Newcastle. It has since made major investment into Gatwick and Aberdeen, and is now looking at the next phase of growth with renewed confidence following the huge challenges of the covid-19 pandemic. Company director and head of the UK and Ireland arm of the business, Mitch Gaglardi, said: “We're looking forward to additional development across our UK and Ireland portfolio. We’re a determined and hardworking company and this funding stream will allow us to fulfil the growth goals we have worked hard to lay the foundations for.”

 

Bibendum grows Spanish wine range with two new producers: Drinks distributer Bibendum Wine has added two new Spanish wine producers to its portfolio – Remírez De Ganuza (Rioja) and El Escocés Volante (Aragon). Wine will be available to all on-trade Bibendum customers and to independent merchants via Walker & Wodehouse. Remírez de Ganuza, founded in 1989, has established a name for itself in the distinguished winemaking region of Rioja for its “rigorous grape selection and an obsession with quality”. Escocés Volante was founded by Scotsman Norrel Robertson MW when he landed in Spain in 2003 and was mesmerised by the quality of the terroir and Garnacha vines of Aragon. Richard Masterson, Bibendum wine buyer for Spain, said: “Bibendum is already known for having a fantastic range of Spanish producers, and these two are exciting additions. Both producers have quality at their core and the reception has already been really exciting.” 

 

Phil Howard renames new pasta restaurant following ‘legal issue’: London chef Phil Howard is renaming his new pasta restaurant, set to open in Piccadilly, from Otto to Notto. Howard – who is behind Elystan Street, Church Road, and Kitchen W8 – has addressed a legal issue “swiftly” and amended the name of his new outpost, with Notto set to open on schedule in early November. Having initially debuted as an online delivery service in May 2021, Notto will offer a menu of authentic pasta dishes flanked by “simple”, freshly prepared snacks, starters and desserts. Howard said: “Having no desire or intention to clash with an existing business with a similar name, we took the quick decision to evolve our own identity to Notto – clearly retaining our root identity while eliminating any confusion.” Executive chef Louis Korovilas (previously of Locanda Locatelli, Pied à Terre, Bancone) will oversee the entire food operation alongside Nicholas Georgoulakis (Sloane Street Deli, Elystan Street) as general manager and Harvi Singh (Le Manoir aux Quat’saisons and Elystan Street) as operations manager.

 

Greene King invests £200,000 in app to strengthen collaboration with licensees: Brewer and retailer Greene King has invested £200,000 in an app to enhance collaboration with its pub partners. The “Pub Comms App” will be used by Greene King Pub Partners’ operations team as a central platform to access materials and resources and easily share them with licensees. Through the app, a business development manager (BDM) can access data and insight including beer volume, line cleaning performance and local demographics in one place – as well as Greene King Pub Partners’ “Pub Power” toolkit, which features best practice and guidance – and share it with partners. The app features email functionality, meaning BDMs can then send this information to their partners through the app, which will then automatically be recorded in compliance with the pubs code. BDMs will be able to gather data and insights about a partners business ahead of a meeting via the app and share them with their partner prior to the meeting to steer discussions. Post-meeting, a BDM can then share relevant resources and guidance via the app. Wayne Shurvinton, managing director for Greene King Pub Partners, said: “The app equips our operations team with more resources and an easier way to share them with our partners, which in turn enriches meetings between our BDMs and partners and ultimately leads to a better partnership all round.”

 

Hawksmoor to open Liverpool restaurant next month: Graphite Capital-backed steakhouse concept Hawksmoor will open its new Liverpool site next month. The company is opening in the grade II-listed India Buildings, on the corner of Brunswick Street and Fenwick Street. The 150-cover venue, private dining space and a bar will welcome customers from Thursday, 24 November. Founded by two childhood friends in 2006, Will Beckett and Huw Gott, Hawksmoor has grown to a ten-strong group. The business, which is now a certified B-Corp, is also set to open a site in Dublin next year.

 

Battersea Power Station’s in-house bar serves 7,000 cocktails over opening weekend: Battersea Power Station’s in-house bar, Control Room B, served 7,000 cocktails over the destination’s opening weekend. Paris Baguette also served 1,221 pieces of cake, while Where The Pancakes Are flipped more than 2,500 pancakes and Poke House served 3,500 poke bowls. In all, the destination welcomed more than a quarter of a million visitors for its first weekend, between October 14-16.

 

Salt Brewery to open eighth taproom next month: West Yorkshire operator Salt Brewery, part of Ossett Brewing Group, will open its eighth taproom next month. The site will launch in Oakwood, north Leeds, following the conversion of the Stew & Oyster premises in Roundhay Road. The new bar will feature four cask ales and seven craft beers alongside its cocktail creations available on tap. Food will be provided by Big Buns. The independent burger brand, from Ahmed and Abdalla Gouda, who brought The Falafel Guys to Leeds, will offer a menu of dry-aged grass-fed patties, buttermilk wings and loaded fries. Salt founder Jamie Lawson said: “Given the resurgence we’ve seen in Oakwood as the place to go in north Leeds, taking Salt there was a no-brainer. The area has fast become a mini hub for independent bars, cafes, and restaurants that we love and admire, and I know Salt can bring something fresh to the party.” Salt operates venues in Saltaire, Granary Wharf, Boston Spa and Sheffield along with two in London – in Deptford and Woolwich. Salt bought Stew & Oyster in March this year and has gradually rebranded the four-strong estate.

 

Administrators put four-star Southport hotel on market: The four-star Southport Waterfront Hotel has been brought to market by administrators. Paul Davies and Sandra Mundy, of James Cowper Kreston, has instructed Savills to invite offers for the property, held on a long leasehold with 235 years unexpired. The day-to-day operations remain unaffected as the administrators are continuing to trade the business as a going concern. The hotel has recently undergone a multimillion-pound refurbishment to provide 131 bedrooms, reception, lounge, bar and restaurant and function suites, as well as including a 120-space basement car park. The sale also includes a circa 50,000 square-foot development opportunity adjacent to the hotel with potential for a variety of alternative uses – subject to the necessary consents. In total, the hotel and development site extends to two acres. Davies and Murphy were appointed as administrators of Waterfront Southport Properties and Waterfront Hotels (Southport), traded as Bliss Hotel Southport, last month.

 

Macknade closes Ashford food hall as covid and cost-of-living crisis takes toll: Kent food hall operator Macknade has closed its site in Ashford due to mounting pressures caused by the covid-19 pandemic and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. The venue in Elwick Place opened in 2020, the second branch for the business with another in Faversham. Bosses revealed in an online statement the difficult decision to close is one the business had “been grappling with for several months” with the 27-strong team operating the Ashford food hall having now lost their jobs. In their statement, Macknade said: “Following the pressures of covid, the cost-of-living crisis and its impact on footfall and customer spend has been a crisis too many for fledgling business. While we pushed through 2022 as far as we could, innovating and adapting our offer, it became clear we didn’t have the footfall and spend required for our Ashford site, and would not be able to deliver the viable business we had planned so long for.” Macknade’s food hall in Faversham continues to trade as normal.

 

Supa Ya Ramen to open in Peckham for second site: London supper club turned restaurant, Supa Ya Ramen, is to open its second site. Founder Luke Findlay is adding to his outlet in Hackney, which opened in August last year, by launching a venue in Peckham. The site is Rye Lane is set to open today (Friday, 21 October). Findlay developed Supa Ya Ramen following spells as development chef at Patty & Bun and head chef of Berber & Q in Spitalfields. He has also worked at Nopi and Tom Kerridge’s Michelin-starred gastropub The Hand & Flowers. He launched the Supa Ya Ramen supper club at his Hackney home followed by a number of pop-ups, collaborations and takeovers.

 

New restaurant, cocktail bar and art space opens in Soho: A new restaurant, cocktail bar, members’ club and art space has opened in London’s Soho. Asimakis Chaniotis, executive chef of Michelin-starred Pied a Terre, is behind the menu at Bantof, which has launched in Great Windmill Street. Currently in its first phase of launch, the venue has initially opened as an evening destination, with the next phase of opening confirmed for 2023. From next year, Bantof will encompass a members club without membership fees, all-day dining, private meeting and work spaces and host a regular roster of members events. Chaniotis has curated a menu of tasting plates that are designed to go with both the cocktail list and the restaurant's rotating exhibition of art. The cocktail menu has been put together by mixologist Jack Sotti’s SuperNacular, offering new and classic cocktails with a twist, named after a different Soho landmark or personality. There is also champagne, wine, soft drinks, tea and coffee available.

 

London chef launches restaurant and wine shop in Hackney: Chef Alex Reynolds has opened a restaurant and wine shop in Hackney, east London. Reynolds has teamed up with Maria Viviani to launch Eline in the Rosewood Building in Cremer Street. Named after Reynolds’ grandmother, Eline offers French-inspired food along with natural and low-intervention wine. Reynolds has spent the past decade cooking in London restaurants, such as Fenchurch, Hide, Seven Park Place and Pophams. The latter is also where Viviani worked as a baker following stints in 108 in Copenhagen and as a pastry chef in Mostrador Santa Teresita in Uruguay before becoming immersed in the world of natural wine, reports Hot Dinners. The wine shop also sells natural English cider.

 

Former Corbin & King GM’s new Notting Hill neighbourhood bistro launches: Ben Whitfield, former general manager of Corbin & King’s Brasserie Zedel in Soho, has launched a new Notting Hill neighbourhood bistro. Whitfield, who now runs Whitfield Wines and is a food and beverage consultant for Soho Theatre, has partnered with Chris D’Sylva, Max Coen and Ale Villa for Dorian, located at the former Raoul’s and Coins Coffee Store site at 105-107 Talbot Road, as reported by Propel in August. D’Sylva is behind Notting Hill Fish + Meat Shop and Supermarket of Dreams, while head chef Coen has worked at two-Michelin starred Kitchen Table and Ikoyi and three-starred Stockholm restaurant Frantzén, and Villa most recently led the drinks offering at Core by Clare Smyth. Among the dishes, prepared in an open kitchen, are potato rösti with crab or girolles and Cornish yarg; mussels with cucumber and shiso; and wild sea bass with sauce vierge; as well as a selection of seasonal specials. A cocktail menu that features drinks made using foraged and seasonal ingredients includes a fig leaf negroni, alongside a predominantly French and Italian wine list. D’Sylva said: “Dorian is part of a movement of restaurants shifting the balance back from east to west London. We want Dorian to be a place to eat at every day, as well as celebrating your most special occasion. I want it to feel like it’s been there forever.”

 

Searcys launches year-long pop-up champagne bar in converted Rolls Royce at Battersea Power Station: British restaurateur and events caterer Searcys has launched its first Champagne Coupé – a mobile champagne bar in a converted Rolls Royce – at Battersea Power Station. The pop-up has taken a year-long residency at the south London destination. Housed in a converted 1935 Rolls Royce Sedanca de Ville, the car-bar has been created to mark Searcys’ 175th anniversary and serves a selection of the company's signature champagne and sparkling wine alongside bar snacks. Located at 21 Circus Road West, it has covers for 20 in a nearby seating area.