The Athenian set to pass 100-site mark this year, rapid growth led by dark kitchen openings but also keen to launch further physical stores: Greek street food restaurant group The Athenian has told Propel it is set to pass the 100-site mark this year, and while its rapid growth has been led by dark kitchen openings, it is also keen to launch further physical stores. The business – founded in 2014 by Tim Vasilakis and preparing to celebrate its tenth anniversary – signed an agreement last year with multi-brand kitchen business, Growth Kitchen. The Athenian has since opened 70 locations with its partner, taking its estate to 80 in the UK – including six physical locations – which it operates alongside 12 overseas sites in Spain and the Middle East. “We’ve only been franchising for a year but rolled out a lot in a short period of time,” Vasilakis said. “We have two new openings a week for the rest of the year, so we will have 100 by next year across the UK, with a further 80 here under agreement with Growth Kitchen. The majority of them are delivery-only, although some are store front, and we want to do more of them. In places where we are currently delivery only, like Manchester for example, we want to get a store front as well. Greek food is completely unsaturated outside London, so there is real growth potential. We have good coverage in England but want to get into Northern Ireland, plus the main towns in Scotland and Wales. We’ve started looking at other markets too, and we’re hoping to go into the US.” Vasilakis has no plans to seek outside investment for his business, which offers “award-winning Greek gyros made the Athenian way”, with a 75% plant based menu. “It’s owned 100% by me, and I feel that’s important,” he added. “I won’t look for investment, this model makes it unnecessary. We spent two years looking for the right partner as we didn’t want the brand to be diluted. It’s been a difficult process to find a partner that cares about the standards as much as we do, but it has really paid off.”

Inn Collection Group people director Liz Robertson to speak at Propel’s Talent & Training Conference, open for bookings with 20% discount on tickets for Premium Club members: Liz Robertson, people director of the Inn Collection Group, will be among the speakers at Propel’s Talent & Training Conference. The all-day conference takes place on Tuesday, 1 October at One Moorgate Place in London and is open for bookings. The conference will showcase examples of outstanding people culture among companies within the sector and how the industry is attracting talent. Robertson will delve into the award-winning Inn Collection Group’s mission statement of “making people happy”, which aims to support its people in their personal and professional development. For the full speaker schedule, click here. Tickets are £345 plus VAT for operators and £395 plus VAT for suppliers. Premium Club members get a 20% discount. Email: kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to book places.

Premium Club members to receive latest UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database this week: Premium Club members will receive the latest UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database on Wednesday (14 August), at midday. It will feature 11 new additions, while one former entry which is no longer trading has been removed. This brings the total number of featured companies to 270, with more than 145,000 words of content. Among the new additions are beverage brands Cafe Barbera, the Italian coffee house brand that is set to soon make it Scottish debut after recently opening its second UK site; Dubai-based specialty coffee roaster and retailer Coffee Planet, which made its UK debut in Cardiff in 2018; and Taiwan-based bubble tea brand Sharetea, which has more than 400 locations globally and is looking to expand to the UK, having exhibited at this year’s International Franchise Show in London. Premium Club members also receive access to five other databases: the Multi-Site Database, produced in association with Virgate; the New Openings Database; the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database and the Who's Who of UK Hospitality. All Premium Clubs members will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to Propel paid-for events including the Talent and Training Conference (1 October), Restaurant Marketer and Innovator (two days in January 2025) and Excellence in Pub Retail (May 2025). Operators that are Premium Club members are also able to send up to four members of staff to each of our four Multi-Club Conferences for free. Premium Club members receive their daily Propel Info newsletter 11 hours earlier than standard subscribers, at 7pm the evening before. They also receive videos of presentations at eight Propel conference events two weeks after they are held. This represents around 100 videos of industry insight over the course of the year. Premium Club members will be sent a dedicated monthly newsletter that will highlight key updates in the sector and direct subscribers to all the vital content their membership offers. Premium Club members also receive exclusive opinion columns every Friday at 5pm, which include the thoughts of Propel group editor Mark Wingett and a host of industry leaders from across the sector. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

JD Wetherspoon – ‘misleading’ to position us with a company undergoing financial restructuring: JD Wetherspoon has said the Daily Mail was “misleading” to position it with a company undergoing a financial restructuring, in an article about Revolution Bars Group. The Daily Mail reported on Friday (9 August) that Revolution Bars – the operator of the Revolution, Revolución de Cuba and Peach Pubs brands – is set to shut a further 25 locations across the UK, as the High Court approved its restructuring plan. This will leave the company operating 65 venues – including 27 Revolution Bars, 15 Revolución de Cuba bars, 22 Peach Pubs and one Founders & Co site – down from 90 at the start of the year. The article highlighted Wetherspoon putting 11 of its pubs up for sale last year, after announced it would be closing 32 of its pubs the previous year. In a statement responding to the article, a Wetherspoon spokesman said: “The Daily Mail referred to a ‘restructuring plan’ by Revolution Bars, so as to ‘stave off insolvency’. The article says that Revolution was ‘forced to close eight bars’. The article goes on to say that ‘Revolution joins a number of other pub chains that have been recently forced to close branches’ and cites Wetherspoon as ‘closing down dozens of branches’ in 2023. This conflation of the positions of Wetherspoon and a company undergoing a financial restructuring is misleading. In 2023, Wetherspoon had record sales of more than £1.9bn, approximately double the sales, for example, of the Daily Mail’s owner DMGT. Additionally, Wetherspoon made pre-tax profit of £42.6m, approximately 11 times the Daily Mail’s.” Wetherspoon chairman Sir Tim Martin added: “Rather perplexingly, the Daily Mail made similar, inaccurate comments about Wetherspoon almost exactly a year ago. It’s very important, where financial matters are concerned, for newspapers to avoid creating patently misleading information.” Revolution secured High Court approval for its restructuring plan after arguing it was needed to save the business from collapsing into insolvent administration. The restructuring scheme will amend Revolution’s obligations under a fully drawn £30m revolving credit facility with NatWest and extend the time to pay its tax debt. It will also feature the “right-sizing” of a portfolio of leases “in order to create a sustainable business”.

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a fast-expanding retail and hospitality business that is seeking a head of finance. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “You will manage a small but dynamic finance team based in the UK and also Portugal. You will oversee every aspect of finance, liaise with various stakeholders, provide accurate data, and assist in the decision-making process. Some of the principal duties will include preparing accurate and timely monthly reports; assisting in the preparation of realistic and appropriate budgets; supporting teams in setting goals and making decisions by offering advice based on budgets; forecasting, cash flow analysis, and accounting procedures; handling all statutory reporting, compliance, annual accounts, and VAT and more.” The salary will be negotiable upon experience and the position is based in London. For more information, email oliwia@corecruitment.com.

Epiris moves ahead in race for Amber Taverns: Epiris, the private equity backer of Big Table Group, has moved ahead of two rivals in the race to acquire Amber Taverns, the circa 170-strong, wet-led, freehold community pub operator. Propel revealed last month that Terra Firma Capital Partners, the private equity firm founded by Guy Hands, was among the bidders for the James Baer-led Amber Taverns, which last year hired investment bank Rothschild to explore its strategic options that could result in a sale of the business, which is believed to be valued at circa £240m. Propel reported that three private equity houses had been in the running for Amber, with the other understood to be Duke Street Capital, the former backer of Gala Bingo and Wagamama. It is understood that Epiris, which created the Big Table Group having bought the majority of the business and assets of Casual Dining Group out of administration in 2020, is now in exclusive talks on Amber. Although Alan Morgan, Big Table Group chief executive, and the former chief operating officer of Spirit Pub Company, recently told Propel the business had not ruled out, and has run the rule over, some pub opportunities, Epiris’ interest in Amber is separate from its backing of the Bella Italia and Banana Tree operator. Epiris formerly backed TGI Fridays UK, Hollywood Bowl and Parkdean Resorts. Propel understands that second round bids for Amber Taverns were due near the end of last month. Terra Firma, which previously backed the Odeon/UCI cinema group, also previously invested in the likes of Unique Pub Company and Inn Partnership. In 1994, former Goldman Sachs banker Hands joined Nomura, and the following year, the firm made an investment in the UK pub industry through the acquisition of Phoenix Inns, which had a portfolio of 1,800 pubs. In 2002, the principal finance group including Hands spun out of Nomura to form Terra Firma, exiting legacy pubs portfolio investments in Inn Partnership, Unique Pub Company and Voyage Pub Company. In 2004, Terra Firma sold the 63-strong Wizard Inns business to Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries (which would become Marston’s) for £89.9m. Hands stepped down as chairman and chief executive of Terra Firma last year, with the company now led by his son, Richard. In April, Amber Taverns reported turnover increased by 15% to £110.4m in the year to 4 February 2024, with underlying earnings rising from £22.4m to more than £25m. Like-for-like sales increased by 11.3% for the year and were up 6% in the first six weeks of the new financial year. It said it had an “encouraging pipeline with a variety of good new site opportunities” and was looking to add another 15 new pubs to its growing portfolio each year.

West Midlands operator Lovely Pubs reported rise in turnover and fall in profitability in financial year before sale to Fuller’s: West Midlands operator Lovely Pubs – which operates seven country pubs and restaurants in the region, including Mortons Kitchen Bar & Deli in Solihull – reported a rise in turnover and fall in profitability in the financial year before its sale to Fuller’s. The portfolio was acquired earlier this month by Fuller’s for a total consideration of £22.5m, having operated for more than 30 years. Its latest accounts, for the year to 31 October 2023, were filed with Companies House following the sale, and show an increase in turnover during the year to £9,469,915 from £9,353,173 in 2022. Of this, £4,324,738 came from drink sales (2022: £4,167,232) and £5,142,177 from food sales (2022: £5,185,173). Pre-tax profit was down from £2,253,180 in 2022 to £1,920,434, while Ebitda decreased from £2.4m to £2.1m. The company received no government grants (2022: £27,150) or rates refunds (2022: £59,175) but did receive an insurance pay-out of £16,240 (2022: nil). Dividends of £1.2m were paid (2022 £1.2m). Director Paul Hales said: “Turnover to May 2024 was £6m compared with £5m in 2023. Group profit for the period to May 2024 was £0.8m compared with £0.8m 2023.” In a precursor to the early August sale to Fuller's, and in a statement signed off a week earlier, Hales added: “Since the balance sheet date, the parent company and its subsidiaries have held discussions for the potential sale of the entire issued share capital of the group. No changes to the operations of the group and company are envisaged in the foreseeable future.”

Slim Chickens franchisee set to open brand’s first drive-thru outside the US: Slim Chickens franchisee KK Restaurants is set to open the brand’s first drive-thru outside the US, Propel has learned. KK Restaurants, based in Paignton, Devon, is the UK franchisee in the south west for the US brand, which is being rolled out here by Boparan Restaurant Group. It comes after Propel revealed last week that OCO Westend, which opened the first Slim Chickens restaurant in Northern Ireland in October 2022, in Belfast’s Boucher Square, had sold its two Slim Chickens sites to focus on its Starbucks portfolio. OCO Westend director JJ O'Hara said they had been sold to the Slim Chickens franchisee in the south west of England. “Absolutely thrilled to share some fantastic news from our team at KK Restaurants,” said KK director Noah Wright. “We've recently expanded our portfolio by acquiring two existing Slim Chickens locations in Belfast, at Boucher Road and Victoria Square. We're also on track to open our first drive-thru, at Sprucefield (Lisburn) in early October, marking a significant milestone as it will be the first Slim Chickens drive-thru outside of the United States.” KK Restaurants was incorporated in 2020, with Noah Wright and Simon Wright its directors. Having previously operated a portfolio of Pizza Hut Delivery and Costa Coffee sites, it operates Slim Chickens locations in Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth, and last summer signed up as the south west franchisee for pan-Asian brand Chopstix.

Mollie’s draws down more than half of £25m parent company loan for expansion across new sites, Manchester to open next year as potential further locations explored: Budget motel concept Mollie’s has drawn down more than half of a £25m parent company loan to allow for expansion across new sites – and said its Manchester site will open next year as it explores potential further locations. The concept – conceived by Soho House founder Nick Jones and initially launched under its umbrella before being spun-off as an independent entity in 2020 – currently has sites in Oxfordshire and Bristol. “The company’s largest site is in its final stages of development in Manchester and is targeted to open in FY25,” director Darren Sweetland said in the company’s accounts for the year to 31 December 2023. “The company has made good progress on its immediate expansion plan, with target locations earmarked and a number of potential sites being explored with a view to securing its future pipeline of openings. In June 2023, the parent company increased its interest-free loan facility from £10m to £25m. As at the date of the signing of the financial statements [26 July 2024], the company has currently drawn down £13.2m from this facility, which is being used to provide working capital and allow the company to expand across new sites.” It comes as the business reported turnover of £10,007,290 for the period, up from £8,253,836 in 2022. Of this, £4,704,150 came from accommodation (2022: £3,756,238) and £5,256,717 from food and drink (2022: £4,477,677). Pre-tax losses narrowed from £2,244,141 to £2,052,772, while adjusted Ebitda was improved from a loss of £1,341,217 in 2022 to a £1,241,683 loss. The company received no government grants compared with £12,000 in 2022. No dividends were paid (2022: nil). Sweetland said the 21% increase in turnover was driven by “strong underlying growth in both accommodation and food and beverage as the business continues to grow its market share”. He said the loss for the year represents “the continued investment in the people, systems and infrastructure necessary to meet the company's future expansion plans”. He added: “The directors remain optimistic about the group's future potential. Both trading sites are Ebitda profitable and are forecasted to continue to trade profitably for the next financial year, despite the ongoing cost inflation environment in the industry.”

Soho House further streamlines corporate office to ‘reflect the current operating environment’, Mews concept to be aimed at long-term members: Soho House has further streamlined its corporate office to reflect the “current operating environment”, as it said that its new Mews House concept will be “very much aimed at our long-term members”. Speaking after the business reported its net loss in the 13 weeks to 30 June 2024 increased to $33.9m from $2.6m the year before, Andrew Carnie, chief executive of Soho House, said: “We continue to transform our back-of-house systems to help us achieve greater efficiencies, improving member service and lowering our costs. And we have further streamlined our corporate office to reflect the current operating environment and our plans for fewer new openings over the next couple of years. These strategic initiatives contributed to house-level contribution increasing 12% year-on-year, with house-level margins up approximately 100 basis points, despite more new houses having a short-term impact on our growth and margins.” Propel revealed last November that Soho House was to open a new venue in London’s Mayfair, after acquiring the iconic Hush restaurant site in Lancashire Court, from the Jamie Barber-founded Hush Collection. Carnie said: “Next up is at Soho Mews House in London, which is our first muse concept, and it's a beautiful unique house that is going to be very much aimed at our long-term members. So, we're very excited about that for this year. We have Manchester opening early next year, and then we recently announced upcoming openings with Barcelona for next year. And then following that we have in the future, Madrid, Milan, and Tokyo. So, regarding the end of this year, we were very focused on opening Mews House.” Carnie also said that the business had increased the quality and variety of member events, which combined with the personalised event recommendations on the company’s app resulted in almost 20% more members attending events year-on-year and an increase of spend per member at events attended. The business also recently delivered its first backstage Soho House pop-up, at Glastonbury.

Big Mamma Group plans Belgium debut: Big Mamma Group, the McWin-backed restaurant group, has lined up its first opening in Belgium. Propel understands that Big Mamma Group, which operates circa 25 restaurants across Europe, has lined up an opening for later this year in Place Flagey, Brussels. It is thought that the business is to take space in the building, which previously served as a BNP Paribas Fortis bank. Last September, McWin, the investment firm of food industry entrepreneurs Henry McGovern and Steven Winegar, which backs companies such as Vapiano and Gail’s, acquired a majority stake in the Big Mamma Group. The long-term investment made out of the McWin Restaurant Fund saw Big Mamma Group valued at €270m. The investment is set to help the business expand further in its existing territories and into new ones, including the Middle East and the US. In June, Propel revealed that Big Mamma Group will add to its regional UK opening pipeline with a site in Birmingham. The company has applied to open a site at Two Chamberlain Square, in what is thought to be the former Vinoteca site, opposite Dishoom. The company also plans to open a new Italian restaurant and bar in Gary Neville’s Relentless Developments’ St Michael’s scheme in Jackson Row in Manchester. Big Mamma Group has also lined up an opening in London’s Canary Wharf, for what would be its sixth site in the capital. The business has applied to open on the former All Bar One site in Mackenzie Walk. Big Mamma Group recently trademarked the name Barbarella for what is thought will be an upcoming opening. 

M&B converts Miller & Carter site to Browns, lines up two further conversions: Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) – the Toby Carvery, Harvester, Ego and All Bar One operator – has added to its Browns Brasserie & Bar estate, with an opening in Wilmslow, Cheshire, as it continues to roll out the brand into more suburban locations. The Phil Urban-led business has converted its Miller & Carter site in Wilmslow’s Station Road to a Browns, the 26th opening under the brand. It has also lined up openings in Exeter in Devon, and in Sutton Coldfield in the West Midlands, for Browns. The former will be the conversion of its Harvester site, known as The Malthouse, in Exeter. Located in Haven Road near the quay, it first became a Harvester around 2007 after Whitbread sold 239 of its stand-alone Brewers Fayre and Beefeater sites to M&B. It is also planning to convert its Toby Carvery in Sutton Park, near Sutton Coldfield, to a Browns. Over the past two years, M&B has been trialling its Browns brand in suburbia, stretching it beyond its usual high street location. The first trial site opened in August 2022 in Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire and the second opened in Ruislip in west London, in December 2022. 

Joseph Holt creates hotel subsidiary due to increase in demand: North west brewer and retailer Joseph Holt has created a hotels subsidiary under the Hotels by Holts brand. The 175-year-old firm said it reflects an increasing demand for pub operators to provide well-priced, comfortable accommodation along with the traditional pub experience. Hotels by Holts director Andrew Kershaw said: “Several of our pubs already had rooms – but we are now bringing them all together under the Hotels by Holts banner, as a separate brand within Joseph Holt. The hospitality trade is changing, and budget-conscious travellers still want something that feels intimate or more personalised, which is exactly what our pubs have always offered. It also means guests can enjoy the activities, groups or events taking place at the pub.” As part of the initiative, the company has refurbished several pubs including the Angel in Knutsford, which has had its rooms named after different parts of the brewing process. The company is also upgrading its first country hotel – a former a Premier Inn located next to its Cat and Lion pub in Stretton. The two have merged as the Cat and Lion Country Pub and Hotel, which is the largest of the Hotels by Holts group with 29 rooms. Other pubs being given an upgrade include the Norfolk Arms on the edge of the Peak District, and the Black Dog in the Lancashire village of Belmont. Kershaw added: “Hotels by Holts is a continually expanding project that reflects the popularity of staying in a hotel that offers a charming pub experience. We have found that people are staying with us for all sorts of reasons. By establishing Hotels by Holts with its own branding, social media and more, we are creating an independent entity, yet one that enjoys all the history and quality associated with the Joseph Holt name.”

Rockfish opens first café site: Rockfish, the nine-strong seafood restaurant group, has opened the first site under its new seafood café concept. The company – which also has restaurant openings lined up in Sidmouth, Salcombe and Topsham – has opened on the former Longboat Cafe site in Budleigh Salterton, Devon. Mitch Tonks, founder and chief executive of Rockfish, told Propel last month that the company’s first seafood café will be a “test case for further expansion”. Tonks told Propel: “The format is smaller, it’s along the lines of a Spanish chiringuito, a beach cafe serving fresh seafood and drinks. We will be open for coffee and breakfast and have 35 inside covers, with a long burner for winter days and 65 covers outside on the beach. It’s going to be a great venue and a test case for further expansion.”

Wetherby Whaler ‘performs well in difficult year for hospitality’ following rise in turnover and profit: Yorkshire fish and chip restaurant operator Wetherby Whaler, which is owned by Better Fish, said it “performed well in a difficult year for hospitality” following a rise in turnover and profit. The company, which operates eight fish and chip ships across Yorkshire, saw its turnover grow from £11,491,717 in 2022 to £12,133,500 in the year to 31 October 2023. Of this, £6,087,050 came from restaurant sales (2022: £5,502,273) and £6,046,450 from takeaway sales (2022: £5,989,444). Pre-tax profit also increased from £1,513,753 to £1,801,381. The company received no government grants compared with £30,000 in 2022. Dividends of £1,300,000 were paid (2022: £700,000). It had cash reserves of £1.9m (2022: £2.3m) and no secured debt (2022: nil). “The directors are pleased with the results for the year,” director Phillip Murphy said. “In what was a difficult year for hospitality, being relentlessly impacted by high food, wage and energy inflation, the company performed well, reflecting its enduring appeal to customers, for both its restaurant and takeaway offerings. This year also Included a full refurbishment of the Wetherby site, as part of the rolling reinvestment programme. The directors are pleased with the company rising to the economic challenges faced and the resilience of the business, but expect the challenging environment to continue across the next 12 months.”

Plans to bring The Ivy to Liverpool move forward after group behind scheme secures circa £1.7m bridging loan: Plans to bring The Ivy to Liverpool have moved forward after the group behind the scheme to bring the Richard Caring-backed restaurant brand to the city secured a bridging loan of nearly £1.7m. The loan, from Together and Watts Commercial Finance, will be used by JSM Property Group to convert Liverpool’s former Bank of England building, in Castle Street. Originally constructed between 1845 and 1848, the grade I-listed landmark has lay dormant for years but is now set to be The Ivy’s third north west venue, reports Liverpool World. Together chief executive Marc Goldberg said: “We have seen so many iconic properties across the UK sitting empty and disused, and we are delighted to have been able to support the conversion of the beautiful Bank of England into a site for The Ivy.” The Ivy Collection also has openings lined up in Canterbury in Kent and Belfast. Last month, Caring confirmed plans to take The Ivy to the US. A document sent out to potential investors detailed plans to export the brand across the Atlantic and also suggested scope to open around 25 more branches across the UK.

Indian street food concept Tamila secures debut stand-alone site: Tamila, the south Indian street food concept from former Roti King executive chef Prince Durairaj and ex-Market Halls operations director Glen Leeson, is to open its first stand-alone site, in south west London. Propel understands that the pair has secured the VE Kitchen site in Northcote Road for an opening later this year. The duo launched Tamila in the Hackney Bridge food court in 2021. They also operate The Tamil Prince in the former The Cuckoo pub in Islington’s Hemingford Road, and the Tamil Crown, on the Charles Lamb pub site in Elia Street, also in Islington. Leeson is also a former general manager, while Durairaj worked in various kitchens across London before the pair teamed up at Roti King. Emma Wright, of CDG Leisure, acted on behalf of VE kitchen and Tom Richards, of ARC, acted on behalf of Tamil.

Wingstop and Heavenly Desserts confirmed for London’s Ealing: Wingstop UK, and dessert concept Heavenly Desserts, have confirmed upcoming openings in New Broadway, Ealing, in west London. The circa 50-strong Wingstop has secured a 2,750 square-foot unit with Heavenly Desserts opening in an adjacent 1,800 square-foot unit. Tom Grogan, co-founder of Lemon Pepper Holdings, master franchisee, Wingstop UK, said: “We are thrilled to be opening in Ealing, bringing our popular menu and flavours to a new audience. We've experienced staggering growth over the last year as we continue to roll out our biggest opening pipeline, and Ealing will be a great addition to our portfolio of sites; a local high street with a strong catchment of opportunity.” Shelley Sandzer acted on behalf of the landlord. Mark Segal, of Brasier Freeth, represented Wingstop UK, and Will Nelson, of McKinnon Nelson, acted for Heavenly Desserts.

Beefy Boys to make London debut: Herefordshire better burger business Beefy Boys is to make its debut in London, with three pop-up events across the capital over the next fortnight. The business – which was founded in 2011 and has sites in Hereford, Shrewsbury and Cheltenham – will operate a food truck at Truman Brewery on Wednesday (14 August), which will be followed a day later with the hosting of a supper club at the Fortnum & Mason’s in Piccadilly. A week later, the company’s food truck will be parked outside The Royal Exchange as part of the city-wide celebrations of National Burger Day. The business will also celebrate the launch of its first book – “The Beefy Boys: From Backyard BBQ to World-Class Burgers” – which is released on Thursday (15 August).

Ma Cuisine founder to return with new French bistro opening: John McClements, the founder and ex-managing director of the Ma Cuisine business, is to return to the restaurant scene later this month, with the opening of a new French bistro concept. Mignonette will open on the ex-Restaurant 109 site in Kew Road, Richmond, south west London. The new 30-cover bistro will serve high-quality, but “affordable” French-inspired cuisine in “comfortable yet elevated” surroundings, cooking with sustainable and seasonal ingredients. The menu will feature a variety of dishes, including daily specials and a focus on “elevating affordable meat options like stuffed pigs trotter and ox cheek bordelaise”. Prices for starters will range from £7-£12, mains from £17-£26, and desserts from £5-£7. McClements previously operated the award-winning French bistro business Ma Cuisine, which at one time operated a handful of sites across south west London, and still has one restaurant open in Kew.

Family-run hotel group makes a loss, national minimum wage having ‘large implications all the way up our staffing structure’: Webb Hotel Group – a collection of four family-owned and run properties in the West Midlands, Staffordshire and Gloucestershire – made a loss in the year to 31 December 2023 and said the new national minimum wage is having “large implications all the way up our staffing structure”. The group’s turnover grew from £11,270,907 in 2022 to £11,895,816 but a pre-tax profit of £653,897 turned into a loss of £300,583. No government grants were received compared with £101,102 in 2022. Ordinary dividends amounting to £270,160 were paid, the same as in 2022. “While turnover was buoyant in 2023, due in the main to increasing prices alongside our competitors, expenses were a challenge,” director Angela Burns said. “Accommodation turnover performed particularly well in all properties and we had the benefit of a few weddings postponed from the pandemic years. Our major challenges stemmed from an increase in expense lines, including interest rates, which effectively doubled our interest payable from that in 2022. Utility costs, wages and refurbishment expenditure all showed substantial increases on 2022 levels. From April 2024, the impact of the 9.8% increase in the national minimum wage has caused large implications all the way up our staffing structure in order to maintain wage differentials. Our group conference office has been restructured and is now in a better position to drive through future business. The business strategy is to reinvest profits back into the group to allow the business to grow further.”

Better burger concept Gourmet Burger Club looking to double estate next year and exploring franchising: Better burger concept Gourmet Burger Club is looking to double its estate next year and is exploring franchising the business. Husband-and-wife team Mehdi Rizvi and Sana Zehran opened their first Gourmet Burger Club site, at 109 High Street in Banstead, Surrey, in 2021, which was followed by a second, at 27 Oakdene Parade in Oakham, Rutland, in January. The concept then made its London debut in June, with an opening in the former Pitaya site in Covent Garden, which Rizvi preciously operated as a Pitaya franchise. “The first few years, we concentrated on making sure we created systems that deliver consistent guest experience with food and service,” Zehran told Surrey Rocks. “In June 2024, we opened our biggest restaurant in the heart of Central London, with 85 covers. We are working on a development plan of opening another two to three restaurants next year, and after that we may look into franchising our business. The idea for Gourmet Burger Club was fuelled by my passion for cooking and entertaining people with flavour fusions from tastes around the world. The execution is a result of teamwork, persistence and lots of learning along the way. During covid, I had a lot of time thinking what could be done, and I came up with the idea of Gourmet Burger Club where everything is made fresh, nothing processed, with lots of flavour. We take pride in what we do, which is evident from the feedback and the reviews we get. Our Google review ratings on all restaurants are above 4.5 stars, which is testament to the service and quality of food we provide.”

Newcastle operators among consortium that acquires city brewery out of administration: Newcastle operators Northern Bar Management and Kleo Tabaku are among a consortium that has acquired Anarchy Brew Co brewery, also based in the city, out of administration. Anarchy Brew Co, based at Benfield Business Park called in administrators at FRP Advisory after suffering financial troubles in the wake of the pandemic, and the business officially went into administration on 1 August. Its assets have been snapped up in a pre-pack deal by Anarchy Beers, a new company formed by a consortium of investors. Among them are Northern Bar Management – which operates The Blackbird in Ponteland, The Northumberland Arms in Felton, Claremont Teahouse in Newcastle, Dot Bagels in Heaton and Novellos in Washington – and Tabaku, whose Lovage and Oster restaurants, in Jesmond and Gosforth respectively, are joint ventures with Northern Bars. Anarchy Brew Co was launched by husband-and-wife team Simon and Dawn Miles in 2012, who set up its brewery and taproom in the business park after outgrowing its original base at Whitehouse Farm Centre in Morpeth. A spokesman for the new company confirmed that all of the staff will continue to be employed, and that moves to expand its taproom are being explored. The brewery taproom’s event space is set to introduce new features, tapping into Tabaku’s expertise to introduce a food offering. The spokesman said: “We are delighted to have been able to save this amazing business and also to retain its dedicated and knowledgeable team, and we are committed to helping Anarchy grow and take its rightful place in the craft beer scenes.”

Latin dessert concept reveals location of new Leeds restaurant: Latin dessert concept Churros Locos has revealed the location of its new Leeds restaurant ahead of its planned opening in September. Last month, the company – which operates sites in Milton Keynes, Manchester, Derby and Peterborough – said it would open in Leeds as it launched its franchise programme. The site will be at the St John’s shopping centre in the city and form part of the food and beverage offer in the upper mall, where it will also be joined by Burger King. For its franchise programme, Churros Locus is seeking owner operators, area developers and existing desert and snack businesses looking to scale up, with exclusive territories being offered. Packages are available for a one-off franchise fee of £9,995, with fixed weekly royalty fees and monthly marketing fees.