Blind Tiger Inns’ ‘adult playground’ concept could be ‘blueprint for future venues’, challenges ‘encouraging us to explore new opportunities’: Blind Tiger Inns managing director Chris Tulloch has told Propel its new “adult playground” concept could be a “blueprint for future venues”, and that challenges within the industry are “encouraging us to explore new opportunities”. The north west multiple operator is set to reopen a former cinema in Manchester as an immersive concept complete with a slide leading down from the original picture house balcony. The grade II-listed building, on the corner of Oxford Road and Grosvenor Street, will reopen next month as The Grosvenor following a £1m transformation. The 800-capacity venue, which has also been a bingo hall and snooker venue and was most recently student pub The Footage, will feature more than 30 beer taps, pool tables, beer pong tables and a photobooth alongside live sport, Manchester club nights, interactive quiz nights and live music from local DJs and bands. “It’s our first project of this scale, but one we have been waiting for a suitable venue for,” Tulloch told Propel. “We are confident this could well be a blueprint for future venues. Once The Grosvenor has opened, we have another site lined up for a late November opening. The pipeline is fluid and will remain centred around the north west. We are enjoying 2024 trading thus far. There are of course challenges out there, but these push us to explore new opportunities and raise our game in existing venues.” The Grosvenor’s food offering will include huge sharers, buckets of wings, loaded pizzas and stacked burgers, while the drinks menu will feature local craft beers on draught, a substantial canned range, premium spirits, alcohol-free options and “show-stopping” cocktails. “We’re creating something truly special for Manchester,” Tulloch added. “Our vision is to blend the best aspects of a sports bar, social venue and nightclub into one vibrant, unforgettable space where memories are made. As we breathe new life into this iconic building, we’re excited to continue its legacy as a cornerstone of Manchester’s entertainment, and we can’t wait to welcome everyone in to eat, drink and have fun in the adult playground.” In August, the company said it is “well positioned” to add another six pubs to its estate after opening its 20th site – The Grey Man in Daisy Hill, Greater Manchester. A new report has been produced by Propel on the fast-growing experiential leisure sector. The report profiles the current shape of the experiential leisure market – including brands, estate size, trading type and geographical location and future trends. It provides a detailed list of UK experiential leisure companies including key staff and Companies House information. The report includes more than 180 companies, 3,500 sites and a 35,000-word report. The report is available to Premium Club members. 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. 

 

Panel about investment market to be held at final Propel Multi-Club Conference of 2024, open for bookings with free places for operators: A panel about the investment market will be held at the final Propel Multi-Club Conference of 2024. The full-day conference – titled “new directions, new ideas” – takes place on Wednesday, 30 October at the Millennium Gloucester Hotel in London Kensington and is open for bookings. The panel will see Emma Bernardez, head of hospitality at haysmacintyre, talking to Lizzie Ryan, partner and head of investment at Imbiba; Robin Rowland, senior operating partner at TriSpan; and Andrew Fishwick, chief executive of Hestia; about the current investment market, where the buyer activity is centred and what is the current investment criteria in a volatile market. For the full speaker schedule, click here. Operators can book up to three free places per company while Premium Club members who are operators can book up to four free places. To book, email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com.

Premium Club members to receive two updated databases this week: Premium Club members will receive two updated databases this week. The latest Propel UK Food & Beverage Franchisor Database will be sent out on Wednesday, 9 October, at midday. It will have 12 new entries, while two which are no longer franchising have been removed. Among the new entries are better burger brands Smacks Hamburgers and Urban Fresh Burgers and Fries, and street food concepts Buy & Bite and Sabrosa Tacos. It now has 270 entries and more than 150,000 words of content. The next Propel New Openings Database will then be sent out on Friday 11 October. The database will show the details of 216 site openings, including which company has opened a site or its plans to open one in the future. Premium Club members will also receive a 11,941-word report on the 216 new additions to the database. The database includes new openings in the casual dining sector such as neighbourhood Italian restaurant Babbo, Korean street food concept Bullgogi and Briar, from Chef Sam Lomas. Premium Club members will also be sent the videos from last week’s Talent & Training Conference on Friday, 18 October, at 9am. Premium Club members also receive access to four other databases: the Turnover & Profits Blue Book, the Multi-site Database, 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 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.

We Do Play co-founder – experiential Leisure market would benefit from consolidation: Richard Beese, the co-founder of multi-concept experiential leisure operator We Do Play, believes the UK experiential leisure sector is fragmented and would benefit from consolidation. “There is scope for operators like ourselves to acquire smaller companies with cool concepts, benefit from economies of scale and build some substantial businesses,” he told Propel. “This sector is still very young, and despite the great successes we are having, particularly in the UK, the big private equity firms will not be looking to acquire the majority of businesses in the sector as many are just too small as it currently stands. However, that is only where the market is today, it could ramp up if there were some consolidation in the sector, as there would be bigger groups around to invest in.” We Do Play, which operates adventure park brand Flip Out and golf brand Putt Putt Social among other concepts, has no plans to become a public company anytime soon. “Being a public company would not do us any favours at the moment the way the market is, too much money has left the AIM market and leaving great businesses with extremely low valuations,” said Beese. “Right now, there are several incredible plc businesses I can think of in the hospitality and leisure sector, but their share price does not reflect their achievements and performance.” We Do Play’s most recent venture was securing the UK rights for fast-growing Canadian interactive game Activate. “North America has been behind in experiential leisure, the UK has been like Silicon Valley with its innovation and range of operators,” argued Beese. “But they are catching up, and Activate is an example of it.” Beese shared more of his thoughts in an exclusive interview for Propel’s latest Premium Opinion, By joining Propel Premium Club, members get access to essential insight through opinion pieces from leading sector commentators, plus our industry-leading databases, receive hospitality’s foremost newsletter first, watch vital video content and get event discounts. 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.

KFC chief people officer – getting recruitment and retention right is crucial as QSR is now a highly competitive market with a smaller pool of talent: KFC chief people officer Kathryn York has said getting recruitment and retention right is crucial as the quick service restaurant (QSR) is now a highly competitive market with a smaller pool of talent. “I’ve been with the company for ten years, and one of the biggest differences contextually is the volume of competition we have across the business now,” York told last week’s Propel Talent & Training Conference. “Ten years ago, a lot of the key players in the industry weren’t there. Now, it’s a really highly competitive market, which is great because everybody has to be on the front foot and think really carefully about employer brand, how we show up and how we recruit. It’s a highly competitive market and a smaller pool of talent than we’d have had pre-Brexit, which is another dynamic in investing in the right people and getting them into the business as quickly as we can. Gone are the days when you can do a long, drawn-out process for team members – it has to be quick, you have to respond quickly and get people interested into your business as soon as you possibly can.” York said KFC has so far put 700 people through its “The Hatch” youth employment programme, which launched in 2022, with more than 60% still in education, employment or training. With two thirds of its 30,000 team members across the UK & Ireland under the age of 25, York said KFC is also in the process of “remapping our entire people experience to make sure we are making ourselves fit for the next generation – looking at the entire employee life cycle and all the touchpoints where we’re doing great and where we have opportunities to do better”. Premium Club members will be sent the videos from last week’s Talent & Training Conference on Friday, 18 October, 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.

London cocktail bar from Mr Lyan named best in the world: A London cocktail bar from bar entrepreneur Ryan Chetiyawardana, aka Mr Lyan, has been named best in the world. Lyaness, at 20 Upper Ground on the capital’s South Bank, has become the first bar in the world to be awarded three Pins in the Pinnacle guide (the equivalent of a restaurant being awarded three Michelin stars). Chetiyawardana is the youngest of three siblings born in Birmingham to Sri Lankan parents, reports The Telegraph. He trained first as a chef, then as a biologist, then in fine art, then in philosophy – all experiences that would influence his next career move into the drinks industry. His approach, which began with the opening of his first bar, White Lyan, in London 2013, is totally unique. “I’m quite happy reading scientific papers,” he says. “So, if we’re doing something that’s quite novel, be it a new technique or an ingredient, we’re very lucky to have legit science friends we can go talk to.”  Chetiyawardana is no stranger to world firsts. White Lyan, which he closed in 2017, was the world’s first bar to be entirely free from perishables – meaning no lemon, ice or fruity garnishes. Lyan also admits he gets bored easily. He told the team at Dandelyan – which was in the space now occupied by Lyaness – that he planned to close it just days after it won World’s Best Bar in 2022. “I was really nonchalant about it,” he said. “Some of them were crying and I realised I’d been really insensitive. Everybody’s still got a job, we’re just doing something different.” It is no accident that his current London locations are both in hotels – Lyaness in Sea Containers and Seed Library in One Hundred Shoreditch. “I think hotel bars are magical,” he added. “There’s a sense of hospitality you can offer in a hotel that you can’t do in other spaces, and London has the best hotel bars in the world.” 

Welsh fish and chip shop told to offer customers fruit and vegetables: Fish and chips may be the Friday night favourite that has delighted families for generations, but lovers of the meal may now have to add broccoli and greens to the fast food staple after NHS bosses called for one shop to serve the dish alongside “a good selection” of fruit and vegetables. Betsi Cadwaladr health board, which provides NHS services in North Wales, warned a proposed takeaway in Morfa Bychan, Gwynedd, that it would be “detrimental” to people’s health unless it offered a range of nutritious side dishes, reports the BBC. The board is also calling for the establishment, which is located close to Black Rock beach, a popular holiday spot, to reduce the levels of fat, salt and sugar on its menu. Health bosses said the chippy’s location was a “particular concern” as “tourists come and go” while locals could suffer the ill-effects of being near a fast-food outlet all year round. “Tourists come and go, but local residents face the consequences of a fast-food-heavy environment throughout the year,” a board statement said. “While we appreciate this is only one extra takeaway unit, this would still be one additional takeaway than what is currently available. Increased access to unhealthy food retail outlets can be associated with increased weight status in the general population and increased obesity and unhealthy eating behaviours among children residing in low-income areas.”

 

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a retail business that is looking for IT service delivery managers looking for a role where they can develop their skills and career. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “The company is seeking someone with broad service delivery skills, particularly in the retail, hospitality and leisure sector. They will be leading a small team to ensure a seamless and effective service desk, working closely with other departments and building relationships with suppliers. As the business grows, they will have the opportunity to expand their skills into different areas, so an entrepreneurial approach and inquisitive mind would really suit this position.” The salary is up to £60,000 and the position is based in London. For more information, email hayley@corecruitment.com. 

 

Exclusive – Slim Chickens European franchise gathers pace: Slim Chickens’ European franchise is gathering pace after parent company Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG) penned a 50-year deal for Poland, Propel has learned. The first site is to open in second half 2025, with the rest to be rolled out over five years. Dan Maund, head of franchise for Slim Chickens, said: “The UK penetration of the brand is gaining huge attraction from great partners. I’m so pleased I will be helping support the opening programme with the leadership team of the UK, to help serve fresh delicious chicken cooked fresh every time in Poland.” It comes after BRG – the owner of the Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Carluccio’s and Giraffe brands – last week told Propel it had a 24-month development pipeline for Slim Chickens in the UK and partnerships signed in Europe. The group, which also operates brands including Cinnamon Collection and Fishworks, said group system sales exceeded £250m for the year ending 31 December 2023. Sales across the group were up £8.4m (6.2%) with underlying Ebitda up by £3.7m (28%). Last month, it opened its 54th Slim Chickens in the UK. In April, Propel revealed that BRG had signed a 20-site development plan for Germany with The Foodelity Group, with the first site there opening in August, at Mohrenstraße 17 in Berlin.

Gail’s secures Elephant Park site: Fast-growing Gail’s Bakery has secured a site for a new outlet in Elephant Park’s casual dining zone in south London. The 1,740 square foot unit on the corner of Sayer Street and Deacon Street was formerly occupied by Bobo Social. Guy Thomas, head of retail and place assets at landlord Lendlease, said: “Gail’s is a great fit for the high street environment we have created at Elephant Park.” The circa 125-strong brand is backed by Bain Capital Credit and Ebitda Investments, a fund led by serial restaurant investor Henry McGovern. Savills, CF Commercial and Shelley Sandzer represented Lendlease.

Frontier Pubs reports like-for-likes up more than 8% in ‘another strong year of growth’: Frontier Pubs, the London partnership between Stonegate Group and Pioneer Hospitality, has told Propel that it has had “another strong year of growth” with like-for-like sales up more than 8% for the year ending September 2024. Earlier this year, the company added three more sites to its portfolio – the Duke of York in St John’s Wood, The Palmerston in Dulwich and The Star Of The East in Westferry – from Old Spot Pub Co, which was founded and run by Bernard O’Neill and Dave Ford. The acquisition has taken the number of Frontier pubs to 15. It comes as the business reported revenue increased 34% to £8,857,000 for the year ending 24 September 2023 compared with £6,622,000 the previous year. Operating profit before depreciation and amortisation for the then 12-strong business was £270,000 compared with £75,000 the year before. Loss before tax narrowed to £111,000 from £411,000 the year before. The company stated: “The group has strong ties with a range of brewers and long-established relationships with food suppliers. Frontier has also hedged the majority of expected energy usage for winter 2024 and a third of expected energy usage into summer 2025. Where possible, any negative cost effects have been mitigated by retail price rises.” The company did not receive any government grants (2022: £41,000). No dividend was paid (2022: nil). Co-founder Jo Cumming told Propel: “We were delighted with our positive performance to September 2023, and have just finished another strong year of growth with like-for-like sales of more than 8%. Stonegate’s continued partnership is the cornerstone of Frontier’s flourishing, and we look forward to continued growth in the coming 12 months..” Frontier was founded in 2016 by Peter Myers, Cumming and Dame Karen Jones as a joint venture with Stonegate. Frontier is chaired by Dame Karen, who is also the chair of Hawksmoor, with a management team headed up by Myers and Cumming, the team behind the successful growth and subsequent sale of Food & Fuel.

 

Individual Restaurants has pipeline of four to five sites next year, reveals opening date for Chichester Piccolino: Individual Restaurants has told Propel it has a pipeline of four to five site openings next year and has revealed it will open its new Piccolino site in Chichester, West Sussex, next month. Propel revealed in August that Individual Restaurants had acquired the former Three Joes site in South Street. Now, Piccolino will start welcoming customers at the venue from Tuesday, 5 November, for the brand’s debut site in the county. The 6,000 square-foot space will offer 110 covers inside the main restaurant and a 16-seat patio. Guests will be able to enjoy Piccolino’s table-side immersive culinary offering such as the giant Pecorino cheese wheel, serving up authentic Roman carbonara, and the salt-baked seabass, cooked and filleted tableside. Alongside the food will be Piccolino’s extensive bar menu, including cocktails and speciality wine. The opening will mark Piccolinio’s 22nd restaurant in its growing portfolio in what is the brand’s 25th year. Andrew Garton, chief executive of Individual Restaurants, said: “We are thrilled to introduce the first Piccolino to Sussex, in Chichester. The restaurant will be delivering the outstanding hospitality and vibrant Italian cuisine that Piccolino is known for.” On further growing brand, Garton previously told Propel: “We’ve probably got a pipeline of four to five sites for next year.”

 

Cubitt House to open new bar this week: London gastropub operator Cubitt House, which is backed by funds managed by TDR Capital, the owner of Stonegate Group, is set to open a new bar this week. It will open Blood Orange Bar – a subterranean candle-lit bar set below The Orange, the Belgravia pub from chef Ben Tish and Georgie and Sam Pearman – on Friday, 11 October. Blood Orange Bar will be entered through a small door on St Barnabas Street, with a separate 16-cover vault separated by a velvet curtain. Cocktails include a queen’s paloma made with mezcal reina espadín tobasiche ensamble, agave syrup, orange marmalade, pink grapefruit soda, fresh lime juice and rosemary. Tish has also created a Mediterranean bar menu including wildfarmed focaccia; seasonal oysters; charcuterie and cheeses alongside wood-fired pizzas. There will also be a roster of vinyl nights and live music from leading DJs. The launch will take Cubitt House’s estate back up to nine pubs. Last month, the company said like-for-like sales were up 21.9% and it made a “significant” year-on-year Ebitda swing of more than £2m during the year to 31 December 2023. Underlying Ebitda before pre-opening costs and exceptional items was £1,478,000 (2022: loss of £696,000). The company’s turnover was up from £16,351,422 to £19,932,710 and it narrowed its pre-tax loss from £3,248,194 to £1,375,671. 

 

Beer & Coffee Company opens its sixth Pug Pubs site: Warwickshire-based Beer & Coffee Company has opened a sixth site for its Pug Pubs concept. The Lost Pug has become the sixth pub to join the dog-friendly bar and restaurant group which includes The Lazy Pug, The Royal Pug, The Fat Pug, The Micro Pug and The Black Pug. Directors Matt and Alex Crowther took over the Northend venue in January and have transformed the premises with a £50,000 refurbishment part-funded by a grant from the government’s Rural England Prosperity Fund via Stratford-on-Avon District Council. A two-bedroom flat has been created above the pub while planning permission has been secured to create a 60-seat dining room with a glass wall to provide views of the countryside – expected to open early in 2025. “The villagers have been incredibly supportive of our venture,” Matt Crowther said. “We had to do quite a few repairs when we took it over since a few of the ceilings had fallen through. We are currently open but only selling drinks, so we have been utilising our catering trailers on site which we take to events and festivals. The kitchen is almost ready, and we have permission for a 60-seater restaurant, so we need to get on and build that once the kitchen is complete.” The Crowthers opened their first Pug Pub in 2012. They also operate Greek restaurant Taverna Meraki, cheese shop and cocktail bar Katoi and cocktail bar Big Malakas in Leamington Spa. In March, they announced plans to expand Taverna Meraki, which they launched the previous year, through franchising.

 

Leicester McDonald’s franchisee returns to profit as turnover increases to record £21.1m: McDonald’s franchisee Dynamic Restaurants, which operates four sites in Leicester, has reported turnover increased to a record £21,068,734 for the year ending 31 December 2023 compared with £18,605,426 the previous year. The company, which employs around 500 staff, posted a pre-tax profit of £296,159 compared with a loss of £94,966 the year before. Gross profit margin was 64.78% (2022: 64.00%). In his report accompanying the accounts, franchisee Angus Fraser stated: “The company continues to substantially invest in its restaurants as part of a plan to upgrade the look and feel of its restaurants with new and enhanced equipment and thereby improve the customers' and employees' experience.” A dividend of £14,062 was paid (2022: £2,000). Fraser became a McDonald’s franchisee in 2016 after an 18-year career with BP.

 

South west restaurant operators acquire fourth site: South west restaurant operators Tamara Costin and William Speed have acquired their fourth site. The owners of Beach House and School House in Devon launched their first Cornish outpost last year, opening the Michelin-listed Harbour House in the former Seven Stars pub in Flushing. They have now returned to Cornwall to purchase seaside restaurant Hooked on the Rocks at Swanpool Beach in Falmouth. The menu, led by head chef Jack Frame, centres around local, sustainably sourced seafood and features crab and lobster caught just eight miles down the coast, Falmouth Bay scallops and daily fish specials. Speed’s grandmother, Wendy Shepherd, worked at the venue in the 1960s when it was called Swanpool Beach Café, while his aunt, Jenny Shepherd, also worked there in the 1990s, when it was called Mozambique Café. “My mother’s side of the family are all from Falmouth, and I spent much of my childhood playing on Swanpool Beach, so when we got the call, we couldn’t say no,” he said. Jeremey Beaching, of SPC Property, acted on the sale.

 

Indian street food business launches franchise programme as it eyes further expansion: Indian street food business My Delhi Indian Streetery, which has three branches across the north east and Midlands, has launched a franchise programme as it eyes further expansion. The concept was founded in 2019 by Elahi Shah Amin, who works in digital media for Newcastle city council. Amin and executive chef Gaurav Dayal opened the first branch of My Delhi at 87a Clayton Street in Newcastle. This was followed by branches at 39 Borough Road in Sunderland and 26 Belvoir Street in Leicester. They have now partnered with Nil Naik, former franchise director at Chaiiwala, Doner Shack and Hero Brands, and his Franchise With Us business to find partners to grow with. “Super proud to announce that we have partnered with My Delhi Indian Streetery to handle their franchise growth development plans for both UK and International markets,” Naik said. “Hosting three passionate Delhi-trained chefs, they have created a dining experience like no other to showcase the incredible foods we grew up and fell in love with. While collecting numerous awards, it has firmly established itself as a proven model with a combined annual turnover of £4,000,000. Alongside the initial three locations, the brand will continue to open corporate owned and operated locations while we begin our journey with them to land incredible franchise partners to complement the offering.”

 

New ‘sustainable’ padel operation start-up targeting semi-rural areas and commuter towns as it looks to grow across UK: A new “sustainable” padel operation start-up is looking to open courts in semi-rural areas and commuter towns as it looks to grow across the UK. The Padel Garden, founded by Charlie Jones and Richard Nicholls, has lodged plans for its first site, in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire. Jones and Nicholls told Insider Media: “Enjoying sport doesn’t have to come at the expense of the environment. As a sport, padel faces some considerable sustainability challenges, from the materials used to build the court and to the turf you play on to the balls themselves, and there is a huge amount of waste. That is largely due to the lack of adaptation and development of technology for recycling and material separation, but we are trying to bring to the fore that padel can grow in a sustainable way. Padel is a profitable business if you do it well – there is plenty of evidence for that. But if you incorporate sustainability in there, there is a financial advantage to that as well. For example, you avoid the retrofitting costs later down the line.” The entrepreneurs are now aiming to raise finance for their venture. 

 

Family-owned hotel business planning regional expansion across UK after acquiring second site: A family-owned hotel business is planning regional expansion across UK after doubling its portfolio. Gwyn, Susan, Charlie and Edwards Harries-Jones are behind Galaxie Hotels, which owns and operates The Galaxie Hotel in Oxford. They have now acquired The Queens Court Hotel in Exeter – a grade II-listed Georgian-era property in the city centre which has been sold for an undisclosed price. It features 20 guest rooms and currently operates as a bed & breakfast. The former restaurant on site has been closed since 2020, while a lounge bar and function suite are included in the property. Charlie Harries-Jones said: “This is the first step in our growth strategy to provide differentiated hotel accommodation in regional cities across the UK. We look forward to working with the current management team and would like to thank those who have helped us secure this transaction.”

Japanese noodle bar concept joins Gloucester Food Dock line-up for second site: Japanese noodle bar concept Daikoku has joined the line-up at Gloucester Food Dock. Daikoku is the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Hugo and Mixuki Lonsdale, who have been making ramen since 2010. Having already opened a site in nearby Stroud, the Lonsdales have now brought their dishes to Gloucester Food Dock. Daikoku is one of the seven lucky Shinto gods – the god of good fortune and the kitchen. Diakoku is the tenth business joining the Gloucester Food Dock community, which includes London burger restaurant Chuck and Strip Steak Bar, which offers “premium quality, rapidly served steak in a street food style”.

 

Birmingham artisan bakery to begin expanding due to demand: Birmingham artisan bakery Levain and Cherry is to start expanding because it “can't keep up with demand”. Pascal Bishop launched the concept in Kings Heath in August 2020 after he started baking and selling bread from home. Now he is opening a site in the suburb of Stirchley before the end of November. Bishop told Birmingham Live that business quickly boomed to the point that he has to turn down requests for pre-orders as there isn’t enough space in his Kings Court shop. The boulangerie currently sells its freshly made French baguettes, bread and pastries from a table in the store's doorway. Bishop said: “Space is the main reason we’ve decided to open in Stirchley. At the moment, we can't employ more staff because there just isn’t enough room, and we can’t keep up with demand. We’ll be selling the same things in Stirchley and more, and we’ll be doing coffee.”

 

Restaurant operator closes Beeston site over lack of trade and warns Nottingham venue ‘also at risk’: Nottinghamshire restaurant operator Chatchai Pongsawan has closed the Beeston site for his seafood and Thai concept, The Lobster Pot, because of a lack of trade and warned his other site, in Nottingham, is also at risk. Pongsawan said business is so hard that staying open would have been “a death sentence”. The lease wasn’t due to end until 2027, but with rising prices, Pongsawan told Nottinghamshire Live it had “got to the point where we were working for nothing”. The restaurant opened in Villa Street in 2016. He said: “With the cost of everything doubling and tripling in price, it just was not profitable, so it got to the point where we were basically working for nothing and just keeping customers happy while not being able to pay our own bills. We love our customers, so it made us happy to do this, but once everyone had left and you’re sat number crunching, that’s when it really hits you. Realistically, I should have tried to exit the lease straight after covid as it never really picked up again. Customers would have seen us busy on Fridays and Saturdays, but the rest of the week we were barely surviving.” Pongsawan warned his Nottingham restaurant – originally opened by his parents in 2001 – is also at risk. He added: “Every other week you see another restaurant business close. We’re not the first and we definitely aren’t going to be the last.”

 

London hotel group owned by Methodist Church opens new restaurant, bar and gym: A London hotel group owned by the Methodist Church has opened a new restaurant, bar and gym at its Euston site. The new features have been added as part of a major refurbishment at The Wesley Euston. Open seven days a week for both hotel guests and walk-in visitors, the new kitchen and restaurant serves locally sourced dishes across its casual dining and two course dining menus, as well as a variety of breakfast options, while the bar serves specially crafted coffee and hot drinks, natural juices, beer and ales, wines, spirits and non-alcoholic beverages. James Barr, general manager at The Wesley, said, “We’re always looking for ways to improve and to enhance our offering. The bar and restaurant and our new gym are already proving to be extremely popular amongst guests.” The site originally opened as the Methodist International Centre more than 20 years ago before being converted to the 100-room The Wesley Euston in 2012. The Wesley Camden, a 38-room boutique hotel within the Camden Methodist Church building, followed in December 2022 with a £9m conversion of its chapel on Plender Street, which dates back to 1824. The brand was created to secure the future of the church’s heritage venues, with all profits ploughed back into the church. A plan to convert the five-storey, grade-II listed Leeds Methodist Mission into an 88-room hotel was abandoned during the pandemic.

 

MasterChef The Professionals champion acquires Nottinghamshire country pub: MasterChef The Professionals champion Laurence Henry has acquired a Nottinghamshire country pub. The chef and his wife Sera are the new owners of the Martin’s Arms in Colston Bassett. The pub, in School Lane, is currently closed for refurbishment. Henry had been a sous chef at two Michelin-starred restaurant Sat Bains, in Lenton Lane, when he won the BBC culinary competition in 2018. He went on to become the chef patron at Nottingham’s Cleaver & Wake, at the Island Quarter. He was a key figure in the development and opening of the fine dining restaurant but he left last November – three months after becoming a dad for the first time – to “work on his own new projects”. He announced the takeover of the Martin’s Arms on his Instagram page, telling his 46,000 followers: “After almost a year of looking for the perfect place to call our own, we are excited to be the new owners of The Martins Arm’s, a country pub and restaurant in Colston Bassett. Lots of work to do over the next few months but we cannot wait to welcome you soon.” The pub, a grade-II listed Elizabethan farmhouse, was run by Lynne Strafford Bryan and her partner Jack Inguanta for more than 30 years until their retirement last year, with head chef Lewis Turner leading the kitchen.

London listening bar concept to go from pop-up to permanent: London listening bar concept Hausu is set to go from pop-up to permanent. Hausu is opening the site in Station Way, Peckham. Until now, the concept has been in its pop-up phase, making appearances across the capital include in the former Coal Rooms site that will be its new home, reports Hot Dinners. The kitchen will be led by Holly Joseph, previously of Frank’s and The Camberwell Arms, with a menu described as “small plates centred around fresh produce”. Alongside the food will be wine and cocktails.