Devon
Coverage highlights foodservice and hospitality activity across this South West county, with reporting focused on key areas such as Exeter, Totnes, Dartmouth, and the English Riviera. Topics include restaurant and pub openings, coastal and rural trade, seasonal staffing challenges, chef-led independents, and the use of regional produce. Insight is tailored for operators navigating summer footfall peaks, localism in sourcing, and the balance between tourism and year-round trading in Devon’s diverse hospitality economy.
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Oct- 2019 -22 OctoberEntrepreneurship
Pasta King acquired by Northern Ireland business entrepreneurs
Devon-based Pasta King, a provider of pasta meals to schools in the UK, has been acquired by two business entrepreneurs from Northern Ireland, Paul Allen and Michael Blaney. Established in 1994, Pasta King employs 55 staff at its headquarters in Newton Abbot, Devon, including a country wide network of field…
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Sep- 2019 -2 SeptemberEducation
Star Pubs & Bars launches free cookery school courses
Star Pubs and Bars is launching a series of free chef training courses at regional cookery schools around the country to help licensees with kitchen staff recruitment and retention. The series of practical one-day courses is aimed at staff in pubs with a strong food offer who may not have…
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Jul- 2019 -23 JulyCatering Companies
Sodexo extends North Devon District Hospital partnership
Sodexo, a leading global services company, has extended its soft services contract with Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust for a further three years. The contract extension will see Sodexo invest in the refurbishment of the shop and café areas at North Devon District Hospital (NDDH) and in new vehicles for…
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5 JulyCafes and Coffee Shops
Venus café chain becomes ‘first in UK’ to use palm plates
Sustainable café chain, Venus Company, has claimed to be the UK’s first commercial café chain to use fully home compostable palm plates from India. The plates are sourced from the areca palm which is indigenous to India and “naturally environmentally friendly” as it falls from the tree and is not…
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1 JulyPubs and Bars
AA Hospitality unveils The Pub Guide 2020
AA Hospitality and Hotel Services has revealed The Pub Guide 2020: 2,000 pubs for great beer and good food, is published today, Monday 1 July, with a brand new look and feel. The 21st edition of the AA Pub Guide is a guide to the country’s best pubs by county,…
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Apr- 2019 -24 AprilRestaurants
The Nettlefold Restaurant to open at Burgh Island Hotel
The Burgh Island Hotel in Burgh Island near Devon has announced it will be opening The Nettlefold Restaurant, named after the hotel’s founder, theatre producer Archie Nettlefold. The seafood restaurant will use locally sourced produce and will be available to non-residents and guests from 14 May 2019. The opening of…
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16 AprilPubs and Bars
Craft Union Pub Company announces 300th opening
The Craft Union Pub Company has announced the opening of its 300th pub – The Tivoli Tavern in Grimsby. The Tivoli Tavern reopened its doors last Friday (12 April) following a substantial £130,000 refurbishment project. The pub is now being operated by long-term staff member, Marie Moran, who has worked…
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Feb- 2019 -12 FebruaryPubs and Bars
Historic 700-year-old pub The Turks Head to reopen
A historic 700-year-old Exeter pub is to be reopened by Clive Watson’s City Pub Group. The Grade II-listed Turks Head is well-known for being frequented by Charles Dickens, however locals were worried its purpose as a pub had gone for good, when in 2005 Prezzo opened a restaurant on the…
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8 FebruaryBusiness
Cornish pasty company criticised by councillors after Devon council buys factory land
A Cornish pasty company looks to have reigned an age old row over the pastry item’s origins after its factory was bought out by Devon’s Torbay Council. Torbay Council bought the factory land for £3m in order to boost its finances through investment. Councillors in Cornwall are said to be…
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Jan- 2019 -10 JanuaryPubs and Bars
Tech entrepreneurs Michael and Xochi Birch reopen 17th Century pub
The Farmer’s Arms, a Grade II listed, thatched roof local pub dating back to the mid-17th Century, has undergone a major renovation as part of a wider rejuvenation of the village of Woolsery in north Devon. The former blacksmiths-turned-inn has been transformed into a pub and restaurant, with two bars,…
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