TRG boss – we all have to find ways of improving our propositions as guests can’t take further significant pricing increases: Andy Hornby, chief executive of The Restaurant Group (TRG), the Wagamama and Brunning & Price owner, has said the biggest challenge facing the hospitality sector next year on the back of the Budget, is “how not to pass on that to customers”. Speaking at Propel’s Multi-Club Conference, Hornby said: “There’s virtually no other industry you can find in the UK that has labour costs of typically more than 30% of sales. Given the national insurance moves and the minimum wage moves for next year, the first biggest challenge we all face is how not to pass on that to customers. There’s no way, as a whole, that the customer base across all of our brands can take significant further pricing increases. The biggest challenge is how to keep improving our businesses, so we find other ways of getting that all important pound of discretionary spend from customers. The percentage of discretionary spend between at home and eating out has stayed very consistent over 30 years, but the cost of serving it is massively higher in dining out. That shows you the rest of the challenge, because the percentage of the pie is not getting any bigger in our direction. The cost for people who have got full-service models in comparison with a supermarket model is obviously massively higher.” Apollo Global Management completed a £506m deal to take TRG private last December, and Hornby said working with the US private equity group has been a “very, very positive experience”. He said: “The most refreshing thing is Apollo is very comfortable looking at us making investments that may take four or five years to pay off, because you are looking at a decent ownership period. For example, I think it would have been harder as a plc to put down fully owned roots in the US, or at least we would have had to have given very clear short-term targets on it. Apollo has been very clear from day one that it would back the right opportunities, but they need to be the right opportunities. It would be things that build on what we consider our strengths, rather than going off-piste into something completely different.” Hornby was among the speakers at the Propel Multi-Club Conference. His video and the 12 others from the conference will be made available to Premium Club members today (Friday, 22 November) at 9am. 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 a supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

 

Hawksmoor CMO joins Restaurant Marketer and Innovator European Summit speaker line-up, open for bookings: Emma King, chief marketing officer of Hawksmoor, has joined the speaker line-up for the Restaurant Marketer and Innovator European Summit. The event is returning for its seventh edition, and tickets are now on sale. The event is a partnership between Propel and Think Hospitality, aiming to build a community, promote the sharing of ideas, recognise talent and define the future of eating out. Bookings are now open for the two-day conference as the centrepiece of the January event series, taking place on 21 and 22 January at One Moorgate Place in London. The conference will focus on technology, marcomms strategies, proposition, brand building, the latest market insights, digital developments and diversification of revenue streams. It is designed for customer focused chief executives, senior marketers and technology and innovation teams, as well as investors wanting to better understand the latest marketing, innovation and development opportunities to build market share and grow. King will join Shona Campbell, chief marketing and growth officer at Ottolenghi, and Andreia Harwood, marketing director – EMEA at Wingstop, on a panel led by Katy Moses, managing director of KAM, to discuss their sources of inspiration and sharing their strategies for building brands that create loyal, passionate fans. For the full speaker schedule, click here. The pre-Christmas early-bird prices are as follows: a one-day ticket for operators is £295 plus VAT, while a two-day ticket is £550 plus VAT. Supplier tickets are £395 plus VAT for one day and £700 plus VAT for two. Propel Premium Club members receive a 20% discount. To book, email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com.

 

Premium Club members to receive next Who’s Who of UK Hospitality and videos from Multi-Club Conference today: The next Who’s Who of UK Hospitality will be released to Premium Club members today (Friday, 22 November), at midday. Another 11 companies have been added to the database, which now features 874 companies. This month’s edition will also include 61 updated entries. The companies, listed in alphabetical order, will have their most recent results reported as well as broader information around Ebitda, plans and trading style available. The database merges Companies House information, interviews and other public information to provide an easy to reference and exhaustive guide to the sector. Premium Club members will also receive all the videos from the final Propel Multi-Club Conference of 2024 today, at 9am. They include Emma Bernardez, head of hospitality at HaysMac, talking to Lizzie Ryan, partner at Imbiba, Robin Rowland, partner at TriSpan, Andrew Fishwick, founder of Hestia, and Craig Rachel, director at AlixPartners, about the current investment market, where the buyer activity is centred and what is the current investment criteria in a volatile market. Meanwhile, Ben Fogle, the TV personality who has summited Everest, raced to the South Pole and rowed the Atlantic, talks about overcoming adversity, teamwork and leadership. Premium Club members also receive access to five other databases: the Multi-Site Database, the New Openings Database, the Turnover & Profits Blue Book, the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database and the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database. All Premium Clubs members will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to Propel paid-for events including 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.

Scottish hospitality businesses set to pay up to 70% more in business rates than in England: UKHospitality Scotland has warned that Scottish hospitality businesses are set to pay up to 70% more in business rates than those in England. The trade body is calling for the Scottish government to introduce at least 40% business rates relief for hospitality businesses in its Budget next month. If this is not forthcoming, UKHospitality Scotland said a local pub in Scotland would pay almost £6,000 more than an equivalent business in England. A town centre restaurant would pay almost £10,000 more and a hotel would pay £26,000 more – 70% more than in England. UKHospitality Scotland is also calling for a clear roadmap to full business rates reform and for a reduction in the higher property rate to fall in line with that in England. “Scottish businesses need business rates support from the Scottish government, especially after they have missed out on relief measures in the past two Scottish Budgets,” said Leon Thompson, executive director of UKHospitality Scotland. “Venues will continue to find themselves tens of thousands of pounds out of pocket, compared with their English counterparts, if this happens again. Introducing at least 40% business rates relief for hospitality businesses could be the difference between venues choosing to employ more people and making investments or abandoning those plans in order to survive.” Meanwhile, more than 400 business leaders have backed the Scottish Hospitality Group’s (SHG’s) call for business rates relief in the Budget. Operators such as Buzzworks, McGinty’s Group and Culloden House have joined hundreds of other restaurants, pubs and hotels in signing SHG’s open letter. The letter urges finance secretary Shona Robison to reduce the business rates poundage to 35p for all licensed hospitality premises without a cap when she presents the Budget on Wednesday, 4 December. The letter also calls on the Scottish government to make good on its commitment to find a more equitable long-term replacement for the current non-domestic rates system ahead of revaluations in 2026. The signatories said the current non-domestic rates system unfairly penalises the hospitality sector, which pays business rates based on their turnover, while other sectors, such as retail, pay based on their square footage.

Des Gunewardena – private equity is a great enabler, but you need to make sure your objectives are the same: Des Gunewardena, founder of the D3 Collective and co-founder of D&D London, has said private equity “is a great enabler for business, but you need to make sure your objectives are the same”. Gunewardena left D&D London in September 2022 after 16 years with the business after a “difference of opinion” with its then private equity backer, LDC, and made his return to the sector this summer. He has opened a Japanese-Korean restaurant, a 1920s Berlin-inspired bar and live performance space at the Royal Exchange in the City of London. He is set to follow that with a site in Canary Wharf, and will next year open a 30,000 square-foot venue with a restaurant, speakeasy and event space as part of the £1.3bn redevelopment of Olympia. The Royal Exchange site was financed by family money, while Giles Rothwell, a former investment banker with Barclays Capital and a close friend, is backing Olympia, meaning Gunewardena has “no private equity and no bank debt”. Speaking at Propel’s Multi-Club Conference, he said: “One of the things we did show with D&D, and before that Conran Restaurants, is that you can build a large multi-concept business. We had a lot of doubters. The other thing I learned is that private equity is a great enabler – it enabled me to acquire the business from Terence Conran. I had 15 good years with private equity and one quite difficult year. Your difficulties come when your ambitions as an entrepreneur are different from the private equity people. It’s not generally that they think they can run the business better than you, but they have the need to exit. An entrepreneur does not always want to exit and is quite concerned about when to exit in order to maximise their value. You just need to make sure your objectives and theirs at any point in the cycle are the same.” Gunewardena also revealed he has invested in Sri Lanka restaurant Rambutan, which was opened by Cynthia Shanmugalingam in London’s Borough Market last year, and was also considering investing in a “small casual dining group that only has three sites but is looking to expand”. Asked what he looks for in a restaurant, Gunewardena added: “The atmosphere has now become a much bigger part of what customers demand of the restaurant experience. If you are in a hotel lobby and listen to what the guests are asking the concierge, they all want to go to a hot restaurant where there’s a buzz – not one that necessarily has three Michelin stars.” Propel revealed yesterday (Thuirsday, 21 November) that David Loewi is to step down as chief executive of D&D London at the end of this year and become an advisor to the business which he founded with Gunewardena. He will serve as an advisor to the board, with a particular emphasis on international expansion, while a new chief executive is appointed. Gunewardena was among the speakers at the Propel Multi-Club Conference. His video and the 12 others from the conference will be made available to Premium Club members today (Friday, 22 November), at 9am. 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 a supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

 

Scotland’s new tourist tax could add £100 to the cost of a family holiday: Scotland’s new tourist tax could add £100 to the cost of a family holiday if given the green light. Highland Council wants to charge overnight visitors a 5% fee from autumn 2026. Hoteliers fearful of a drastic downturn in business have branded the plans “insane” following the launch of a public consultation, reports The Telegraph. The tax, which attracts VAT, would apply to all visits with no exemptions for local people, including reasons such as hospital visits. A family of four holidaying in Inverness in August would pay £1,473 for a seven-night Premier Inn stay, but with a 5% levy plus VAT, they would be forced to part with an extra £88. Stay at a more upmarket hotel, and a booking totalling £1,700 would attract an additional £102 in tax. For a couple staying seven nights at the city’s Marriott hotel in early August, an extra £156 would be added to the bill. Tony Story, owner of Kingsmills Hotel and Ness Walk Hotel in Inverness, said: “It’s insane. Normally, these taxes are introduced when you’re trying to deter tourists coming, not the other way around. I suspect the number of tourists we’ll lose will be directly in line with the level of the tax, so that’s 5% occupancy. That’s a major issue for the hotel sector, particularly when you have the level of seasonality like we do. If we don’t make money during the summer, we’re absolutely goosed.”

 

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a high-end foodservice company that is looking for an operations manager to join the team covering its Central London operations. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “The company is seeking a real foodie operator, someone who has plenty of energy and charisma. Ideally, they will be from a commercial environment with multi-client and multi-site experience within contract catering. Although this is an operations manager role, it does have a sales spin, so experience in this area would be preferable.” The salary package is up to £65,000. For more information, email dan@corecruitment.com.

 

Exclusive – Prezzo hires Mark McCulloch as its new CMO: Prezzo, the Cain International-backed Italian dining group, has hired Mark McCulloch, formerly of Pret A Manger and YO! Sushi, as its new chief marketing officer on a fractional basis, to “lead brand growth”, Propel has learned. McCulloch, the founder and chief executive at Supersonic INC, is a leading expert in global hospitality brand and marketing who will work closely with Prezzo’s new chief executive, James Brown, to drive the brand's strategy and “revitalise its position as one of the UK’s most beloved Italian dining destinations”. The 96-strong Prezzo said that McCulloch brings with him over 20 years of experience, having held senior marketing roles at some of the industry’s biggest names. Prezzo said McCulloch’s appointment marks the next phase in the brand’s strategy to “enhance customer experiences, be the most loved Italian restaurant in the sector,” refresh its brand identity, attract new customer groups and “continue delivering the authentic Italian favourites that has made it a staple on the British high street for 25 years”. The company said: “During his time at Pret, he played a key role in relaunching its coffee in and digital strategy, and as marketing director at YO! Sushi, he was instrumental in defining the brand’s DNA and its relevance in the digital space, winning two Webby awards as it was cited the world’s most socially engaging restaurant brand. Mark’s proven track record in shaping and growing well-known hospitality brands makes him the perfect addition to Prezzo.” McCulloch said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Prezzo at such an exciting time. I’ve always admired the brand’s rich heritage, serving Italian favourites up and down the UK for the past 25 years. The opportunity to work with James Brown and the Prezzo team to help grow the well-loved brand is a challenge I can’t wait to get my teeth into. With my experience working with the best brands in the hospitality sector across the globe, I’m confident we can create something incredible that the team will be proud of and that will excite our guests (current and new).” Brown said: “Mark’s reputation in the industry speaks volumes. His work with brands like Pret A Manger, YO! Sushi, Dishoom and Rosa’s Thai has demonstrated his ability to innovate, adapt, and lead in competitive markets making brands both busier and more famous. We’re thrilled to have him on board and look forward to working together as we refresh and evolve Prezzo and take it as a team to the next level.”

 

Bob & Berts reports strong sales following record year, forecasts return to profit in 2025: Cafe brand Bob & Berts has reported strong sales following a record year and forecast a return to profit in 2025. The 30-strong business, which has 17 locations in Northern Ireland, seven in England and six in Scotland, reported turnover of £21,533,667 for the year to 30 June 2024, up from £19,620,150 in 2023. Pre-tax losses narrowed from £580,320 in 2023 to £394,932, while trading Ebitda was up from £791,025 to £1,579,579. “The year ended 30 June 2024 was a record year of sales for Bob & Berts,” said director David Ferguson. “The group continued its expansion across the UK and Northern Ireland with the opening of an additional four stores (Blackpool, Wakefield, Belfast Ann Street and Strabane). Sales and transactions for FY24 have remained strong for the group. The accounts show a loss of £300,167, which is after accounting for impairment losses of £262,431 on fixed assets. The remainder of the loss for the year was largely due to the increased cost of sales coupled with an increase in labour costs. Management continues to react to this with a number of technology investment projects under way in order to drive efficiencies into the business. The group posted a trading Ebitda of £1.6m, this represents a 7.3% return on sales, a significant improvement from a 4.0% return on sales in the prior year. This demonstrates the prior year’s investment in operational management and stock systems taking effect in the business. Looking ahead, the directors foresee food and drink inflation and energy costs continuing to stabilise. The current challenge faced by the business is the continued increasing labour costs. Management believe that this will continue to be a challenge over the next 12 months and have reacted by implementing several store design and technology initiatives to generate store efficiencies. Management believe that as these projects are embedded into the organisation and sales remain strong, the group will return to profit in FY25.” Opening costs of £354,891 (2023: £227,830) were reported under exceptional items. Dividends of £100,000 were paid, the same as in 2023. The business, founded in 2013 by Colin McClean, said earlier this year that it has reset its growth goal to 100 sites.

 

Loungers gears up to open first purpose-built Brightside, will reflect learnings from first three sites: Café bar operator Loungers is set to open its first purpose-built Brightside site today (Friday, 22 November), which will reflect learnings taken from the first three sites launched under the roadside dining concept. The company currently operates three sites under its roadside diner concept Brightside in the south west, having launched it in February 2023. All three were converted from former Route Restaurants. The new 4,500 square-foot Brightside will open at the Ram Jam services on the northbound side of the A1 near Stretton, Rutland. Loungers chairman Alex Reilley told Propel: “We’re really excited about opening our fourth Brightside, particularly as it’s located on A1, which is an extremely busy road. The Ram Jam Brightside is our first purpose-built site and is our first site in Rutland. We have learnt a lot from our first three Brightside’s in Devon and Cornwall and have reflected that in the layout for our Ram Jam site. This includes a dedicated point to order and wait for takeaway and some sofa seating”. Last month, Nick Collins, chief executive of Loungers, told Propel that Brightside was seeing decent like-for-like growth. He added: “We’re pleased with how it’s doing, we just need to really stick at it and really work on our marketing. We need to see how the concept evolves and see how the sales build in those sites.”

 

Anglian Country Inns to open first bakery as it seeks opportunities to grow, profit increases as revenue passes £20m for first time and site Ebitda up 23%: Gastro-pub operator Anglian Country Inns (ACI), led by James Nye, will open its first bakery next year as it “seeks opportunities to grow”. The bakery will open early next year in converted former barns at the White Horse Inn at Holme, near Hunstanton, which the business acquired in October 2023 and which started trading in June 2024. The acquisition of the free hold of the pub, which previously had a sitting tenant, brought the company’s estate to ten pubs. It comes as ACI said its profit grew in the year to 31 March 2024, as revenue passed £20m from the first time and site Ebitda increased 23%. A pre-tax profit of £156,012 in 2023 increased to £364,573 while a “strong top line performance” saw sales increase 14.1%, from £18,029,875 to £20,577,201. Of this, £10,892,699 came from food (2023: £9,516,023), £6,560,480 from drink (2023: £5,787,502) and £1,671,724 from accommodation (2023: £1,484,437). “The growth came from a combination of increased footfall and spend per head, evenly spread between drinks, food, accommodation and events,” director James Nye said. “Site Ebitda was £3.7m (2023: £3.0m), a 23% increase on the previous year, and the directors are very pleased with the performance of the business in what has been perceived as a challenging year for the sector. Amidst challenging trading environment for the sector, the sales have remained robust, and ACI was able to meet the continued demand for premium pub food. Inflation remained a constant challenge throughout the year on many different stock items. Cost was, in part, passed on to customers. However, smart menu engineering, innovation around menu formats and close operational control allowed margin to be improved on food and drinks margin maintained. Overall gross profit margin of the business increased 0.4% to 74.7% (2023: 74.3%).” Nye said the national minimum wage increases at the start of the year represented “the highest ever increase in staff costs to the business” but staffing levels were maintained by “careful labour control and an increase in productivity”. ACI also took pre-emptive steps in scrapping the 20 to 22-year-old age pay bracket and paying apprentices based on age rather than apprentice bracket, as well as taking on 13 apprentices. Better training and inductions, a new and improved leadership training programme, and a complete overhaul of performance reviews and reward programmes saw staff retention and employee engagement “improved considerably”. A staff communications platform and an improved customer loyalty system are also under consideration. Dividends of £216,544 were paid (2023: £266,545). Average employee numbers rose from 283 to 406.

 

Starbucks weighs strategic partnerships for China operations: Starbucks has reiterated it is exploring strategic partnerships for its Chinese operations after a report stated that the company was considering selling a stake in the business to a local partner. Bloomberg reported that Starbucks was exploring options for its Chinese operations, including the possibility of selling a stake in the business, and it has gauged interest from prospective investors including domestic private equity firms. Responding to the report, Starbucks said in a statement it was “working to find the best path to growth, which includes exploring strategic partnerships”. The company, which operates nearly 7,600 stores in China, said: “We are fully committed to our business and partners, and to growing in China.” Last month, new Starbucks chief executive Brian Niccol said that the company was aiming to revamp its US stores and gain a better understanding of its Chinese operations after facing a decline in demand for its offer in both.

 

Nottingham Indian restaurant operator to launch new hybrid concept with plans to expand across UK: Nottingham Indian restaurant operator Bobby Singh is opening a new hybrid restaurant and street food venue that he plans to expand across the UK. Singh, who is behind 4550 Miles From Delhi, has partnered with the Ghuman family, owners of the Octavian Group, to launch 360 Indian Restaurant Bar and Grill in Calverton, Nottinghamshire. The venue in Main Street will open in December and have a bar menu, Indian street food, a formal dining area and an event space for up to 150 guests. It will also host live music and DJ nights. Singh said: “I love 4550 and the fact that it has been going strong in Nottingham for more than 20 years, but I wanted to create the start of a hybrid concept of informal/formal dining which can grow aggressively in the UK. This is why I chose the Ghuman family as my partners – it knows how to scale aggressively. I have many recipes that can form part of a hybrid eatery, to complement our current formal dish menu. I also have noticed way more vegetarians, so I have catered for a balanced menu, whereas traditional UK Indian food menus have had a meat bias.” Sukhi Ghuman added: “We felt this part of Nottinghamshire needed an Indian restaurant/bar concept. I have been saying to my dad that we have to travel to Birmingham, Leicester or Derby to find a more relaxed Indian, a hybrid between a pub and a restaurant. I also wanted to add music to make Sundays and some evenings more fun. I have known Bobby for 13 years and have been a regular customer of 4550 Miles from Delhi since 2004. The aim is to grow this concept around the UK.”

 

Roseacre targets 15-strong estate as it prepares to open tenth site and seventh with Star Pubs: Midlands operator Roseacre Pub Company is targeting a 15-strong estate as it prepares to open its tenth site and seventh with Heineken-owned Star Pubs. The two companies are undertaking a joint £350,000 refurbishment of The Roseycombe in Binley Woods, near Coventry, ahead of reopening the pub in time for Christmas. The overhaul will turn The Roseycombe into a “premium local” that will serve drinks only initially and will introduce food in January. The investment will include the addition of five eight-seater dining pods in the garden, an outside bar and a heated patio covered with a stretch tent. Inside will be a new dining area developed out of an old conservatory, a barista coffee machine, a carvery and a kitchen refit to enable the pub to major on food. The Roseycombe fits into Roseacre’s core business model of mid-market suburban dining pubs with 100-plus covers. Trade is typically 60% dry and 40% wet and the food centres on “good quality, affordable pub classics”. Owner Ash Gartshore said Roseacre is looking to grow to up to 15 sites and hopes to lease more pubs from Star Pubs. “Our expansion is contingent on finding the right pubs in the right locations with the right demographics for our offer,” he added. “We only consider pubs within a 45-minute drive from Leicester, so team members don't need to move home to take up new positions. Sales are up year-on-year and have been relatively buoyant over the summer, despite the poor weather, with excess demand at times. We’re seeing new custom both from people trading down from gastropubs and from others trading up from lower-margin pubs that have been forced to increase their prices.” 

 

Milanese sandwich shop heading to London: Milanese sandwich shop De Santis is heading to London. De Santis will open in the church crypt of Mercato Metropolitano in Mayfair on Wednesday, 27 November, offering a mixture of sandwiches and salads alongside a selection of meat and cheese boards. Combinations include Cesare (bresaola, mozzarella, artichokes and olive paté), Bologna (Mortadella, Gorgonzola and pepper jam) and Angel (Cantabrian anchovies, stracciatella, green tomatoes and lemon). There will also be a wide offering of Italian spirits and cocktails, plus Italian wine and beer, reports Hot Dinners. The original De Santis has been serving up its toasted paninis in Milan since the 1960s and is lined with the photos of famous Italians who have dined there.

 

Edinburgh Real Ale Company puts half its estate up for sale: Edinburgh Real Ale Company, owned by the Gibbons family, has puts half its estate up for sale. Christie & Co is advising on the sale of the Cloisters Bar and the Stockbridge Tap, two traditional pubs in the city that specialise in cask and craft beer. They are being marketed at an asking price of offers in excess of £950,000 each. The family-owned business has owned and operated the sites for more than 20 years, alongside the Bow Bar in Edinburgh and the Royal Hotel in Comrie. Simon Watson, business agent at Christie & Co, said: “The pubs are well known to the licensed trade, and we expect high levels of interest from the outset.”

 

Birds lodges plans for site in Nottinghamshire village: East Midlands bakery business Birds has lodged plans to open a new site in a Nottinghamshire village. The company has applied to Rushmore Borough Council to convert the former Coral bookmakers in High Street in Ruddington that shut in May into a bakery, reports Nottinghamshire Live. Birds currently operates circa 60 stores across the region.

 

Z Hotels to open in London’s Leicester Square for 15th UK location: Z Hotels, owned by former Thistle Hotels chief operating officer Bev King, is set to open in London’s Leicester Square for its 15th UK location. Opening in early 2025 at Garrick House, 3-5 Charing Cross Road, it will be the company’s 12th hotel in London, alongside locations in Bath, Glasgow and Liverpool. Featuring 95 bedrooms and a ground floor reception, the new hotel will also feature state-of-the-art plant equipment and low carbon technologies. Water consumption will be reduced by using water saving devices including shower flow limiters and tap aerators in all rooms. King, who founded Z Hotels in 2010, said: “Our aim is to provide guests with an exceptional experience that combines affordable luxury with an unbeatable location.” Z Hotels also offers a free membership programme and an easy sign-up process that delivers benefits such as a 10% discount, complimentary cheese and wine, free room upgrades and early check in/late check out.

 

Bristol brewer Left Handed Giant opens specialty cafe: Bristol brewer Left Handed Giant has launched a specialty cafe as part of the recently completed £12m refurbishment project at the city’s Blok business hub. The company, which was founded by former BrewDog director of operations Bruce Gray in 2015, has opened Commune Café, which offers a selection of hot drinks, sandwiches and sweet treats. Left Handed Giant operates seven further outlets serving food and drink across the city. Having started brewing in 2015, Commune Café complements Left Handed Giant’s other coffee offerings at New Cut Coffee in Stokes Croft. There are plans to expand the Commune Café operation in the near future to include an alcohol licence. Gray said: “This was a wonderful opportunity for us to expand our presence in the city and continue to serve top quality food and drink to the people of Bristol.”

 

Homeslice launches at Harvey Nichols for first opening in five years: London better pizza brand Homeslice, founded by Alan and Mark Wogan, will today (Friday, 22 November) launch at Harvey Nichols for its first opening in five years. Launching on the fifth floor of the luxury Knightsbridge department store, the latest Homeslice will serve up the brand’s old school favourites alongside a new menu reimagining some of its favourites from the past. For the first time ever, Homeslice, which was founded in 2013, will also be serving non-pizza dishes, including £6 ‘from the counter’ items such as dough balls, stracciatella and caviar, wagyu polpette, deep fried olives and meatball sliders. Mains, from £18, include mac n cheese fondue, a spaghetti hash with wagyu beef and oven baked lasagne. There will also be a curated wine and Champagne list and a collaboration with Hackney Gelato for an artisanal ice-cream counter. Wogan said: “This residency at Harvey Nichols is a fantastic opportunity for the Homeslice team to flex some culinary muscle. We want to serve a little something extra and have had great fun coming up with Homeslice takes on some classic dishes beyond pizza. As ever, pizza will be the focus, but with an extra slice of indulgence across the menu.” Operating from six locations pre-covid, Homeslice now has three restaurants, in the City, Marylebone and Neal’s Yard.

 

Almost Famous founder to open ‘hidden bar’ concept beneath new burger business in Manchester: Beau Myers – founder of Almost Famous, which has four restaurants across Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds – is set to open a “hidden bar” concept beneath his new burger business in Manchester. Myers, who launched Almost Famous in Manchester's Northern Quarter in 2012, opened Super Awesome Deluxe in Thomas Street, also in the Northern Quarter, last month. He and Cressida Lawlor, who has previously worked at the likes of London Cocktail Club and Sexy Fish, are now planning to open Ego Death in the space below Super Awesome Deluxe. The bar will be nestled behind an internal unmarked door within the fast-food spot that then leads visitors downstairs via a dimly-lit staircase. The venue will offer a list of classic cocktails, bourbons and Champagne by the glass or bottle. Myers, who was also behind Socio Rehab in the city, will open the new bar on Thursday, 28 November. “It’s been 20 years since we opened Socio Rehab, so it seems pretty poignant to be opening another amazing cocktail bar,” he told the Manchester Evening News. “We changed the landscape of cocktail bar culture then, and that’s something we’re trying to do again. We’ve partnered with Cressida Lawlor to make this dream happen. She’s a total firecracker and reminds me a lot of myself 20 years ago, she’s the future of cocktails and bartending and has that maverick spirit. For me, it’s a full circle moment, opening a bar and giving over creative control to someone I trust. For Cressida, this marks a defining moment, her first bar. It’s the culmination of more than a decade spent honing her craft at some of the world’s top bars and collaborating with the best brands.”

 

West Midlands pizza concept opens fourth site: West Midlands pizza concept Red Hot Mamma has opened its fourth site. The company has launched the outlet in Solihull, adding to its restaurants in Leamington Spa, Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick. The new venue has opened in the former Funky Bear bar premises in Station Road, reports Birmingham Live. Red Hot Mamma offers Neapolitan pizza cooked in a wood-fire oven at 480 degrees.

 

Boojum opens in Birmingham: Mexican fast-casual brand Boojum, which was acquired by the Azzurri Group last summer, has opened in Birmingham. Propel revealed in September that Boojum, which made its UK mainland debut in Leeds in April, had secured a site in Birmingham’s New Street. The business, which also opened in Nottingham in September, has now open at 64 New Street. Boojum, which was founded in 2007 and operates 16 sites in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, also plans to open a Liverpool location before the end of the year.