Restaurants

The Restaurants section on Catering Today delivers comprehensive coverage of the UK restaurant industry, from independent operators to national chains. It reports on business performance, openings, acquisitions, and leadership changes, alongside analysis of market trends, menu innovation, and consumer behaviour. With insight into finance, operations, technology, and sustainability, Catering Today provides hospitality professionals with the intelligence and updates shaping commercial strategy across the UK dining landscape.

Feb- 2019 -

11 February

Mike Ashley cancels bid for Patisserie Valerie

Retail tycoon Mike Ashley has cancelled his bid for cake chain Patisserie Valerie, just two days after his Sports Direct group tabled the £15m bid. Sports Direct’s bid was said to be £2m short of the sum administrators KPMG were looking for according to reports in the Financial Times. According…
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7 February

Pidgin appoints new head chef

Hackney restaurant, Pidgin, has announced it has appointed Greg Clarke as its new head chef. Clarke will takeover from Adolfo De Cecco on 11 March, with De Cecco preparing to open his own restaurant. The restaurant’s owners James Ramsden and Sam Herlihy, who also run Heddon Street’s Magpie restaurant, said…
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6 February

Restaurant refurb work could be torn down following planning dispute

A Stafford restaurant could be ordered to tear down £25,000 worth of refurbishments after they were made without planning permission. The issues at the restaurant, named Chico’s, are focused particularly on new cladding which was erected without planning permission, meaning the restaurant has had to submit a retrospective planning application…
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6 February

Victor Garvey’s Covent Garden restaurant Sabarita closes

Chef and restaurateur, Victor Garvey, has closed his Covent Garden restaurant, Sabarita, the chef’s Soho restaurant Rambla on Dean Street will remain open. According to Garvey the restaurant has been shut down since November, with Catering Today finding that Sabarita’s phone is no longer receiving calls despite the fact its…
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5 February

The Grahamston officially launches following £1.2m transformation

The Grahamston, a new restaurant and bar located in the heart of Glasgow city centre, celebrated the completion of its £1.2m transformation with an official launch party. Located within on Argyle Street, the new dining and drinking experience is inspired by Grahamston, forgotten village in the heart of the city buried…
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5 February

Byron Burger receives £10m cash injection following store closures

Byron Burger has received a £10m cash injection from its investors after it closed 19 restaurants as part of a CVA in May. The new investment from Three Hills Capital Partners is expected to see the chain refurbish all of its existing restaurants, after it began to restructure branding, marketing,…
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5 February

Urban Brasserie awarded AA rosette four months after opening

The Crowne Plaza at London’s Heathrow Terminal 4 has been awarded an AA Rosette for its restaurant, Urban Brasserie, just four months after its official opening in October 2018. Executive head chef Sam Tekkle leads the restaurant, which serves modern British cuisine including heritage beetroot salad, lamb Scotch egg with…
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5 February

Jamie Oliver denies McDonald’s advisory role

Jamie Oliver has denied being involved with McDonald’s as an “informal advisor” after reports this morning (5 February) claimed he had been having regular discussions with the chain over healthy eating. In the past Oliver has been heavily critical of the fast food chain, branding its burgers “not fit for…
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4 February

Borough Market restaurant adds grey squirrel lasagne to menu

Native, a restaurant in London’s Borough Market, has added grey squirrel lasagne to its menu. Ivan Tisdall-Downes, the restaurant’s owner said the squirrel ragu was made by slow cooking meat from the squirrel’s hind legs. The ragu is then used to make an open lasagne using celeriac instead of pasta.…
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4 February

Brothers jailed 14 years for £3m pub and restaurant tax scam

Three brothers, who stole £3m in a tax scam involving pubs and restaurants, have been jailed and banned from being directors for 28 years. Bournemouth brothers Shahab Hashtroudi, 64, Shahin Hashtroudi, 58 and Hedayat Hashtroudi, 68, ran pubs and restaurants in Hampshire, Dorset and Surrey, using the money to prop…
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