News and Trends

  https://www.rpbi-openings.co.uk/  24 March 2021 On 7th April Padstow is to welcome a brand-new speciality coffee shop in a prime site in the middle of the harbourside town. Working with Cornish-born coffee roasters Origin Coffee, the Rick Stein Coffee Shop marks the arrival of the first speciality coffee shop in the area. Spearheaded by Charlie Stein – director of drinks across all Rick Stein restaurants – the launch aims to bring Cornwall some of the very best, ethically-sourced coffee from the Certified B Corporation roastery, and its global producer partners. Housed in the former Rick Stein Patisserie, the building has undergone a complete redesign by the family-owned restaurant group’s Directors of Design, Jill and Ed Stein. A mason and carpenter by trade, Ed Stein has built a stained wood service bar with bespoke zinc countertop – complementing exposed brick walls and the modern, paired-back style of the shop. Wooden benches sit in the shop’s windowfront overlooking the...

https://www.rpbi-openings.co.uk/  24 March 2021 Nottingham-based coffee roasters 200 Degrees Coffee has announced that its 12th coffee shop will open in The Hybrid Building, Mosley Street, Manchester towards the end of May. The 80-seat shop will be on the expansive ground floor of this new office development just off St Peter’s Square, next door to the Art Gallery, and will create 15 new full time and part time jobs. 200 Degrees director, Tom Vincent, sees this as part of the coffee roaster’s rapid return to growth post-Covid. He said: “It may seem a bit strange to open a coffee shop in a city full of great coffee shops at a time like this but we hope our independent feel and relaxed, comfortable style will add something memorable to the city. We’re also keen to show off our own hand roasted coffee and tempt people with our freshly made sandwiches and vegan brownies. “We’ve wanted to bring 200 Degrees to Manchester for many years and have finally found the perfect location – we’re ...

https://www.rpbi-openings.co.uk/  25 March 2021 D’Acqua in Sunderland has been taken over by Christopher Spence, the owner of Emily’s Table in the city, to reopen as a fine dining restaurant. Subject to contracts exchanging he will transform it into an upscale dining experience, called Undisclosed. Located on St. John’s Street, Undisclosed is hoping to launch on the 17th May following the recent government announcements. The renovation cost around £10,000, and Christopher will be looking to hire experienced kitchen hands, waiting staff and cocktail bartenders to work when the restaurant opens in May. Chef Patron, Christopher, was inspired by the hidden bars he visited during his time in Australia. He wanted to bring the speakeasy influence to Undisclosed, which is why there will be little outside branding to give the restaurant an exclusive feel. Located in the basement of the building, the restaurant will feature a gastronomy menu and molecular cocktails. Christopher opened Emily’...

  qsrmedia.co.uk We look back at the highs and lows of the UK multi-site restaurant industry these past twelve months. This year, Britain’s quick service and fast casual restaurant industry has been largely defined by how it is looking to survive and, in some cases, thrive amidst the series of challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic. All that and more on QSR Media UK ’s Year In Review. Navigating sets of restrictions COVID-19, considered by many in the industry as the “great accelerator”, became a much more grim reality for the UK's foodservice industry when the government ordered all pubs, cafes and restaurants to close last March, with players that had delivery and takeaway capabilities being the ones allowed to operate. This came on top of the lingering uncertainty about Brexit that is due to be completed by year-end. Months later, lockdown rules were eased and the “Eat Out to Help Out” scheme by the government was established to boost businesses and consumer ...

  www.chd-expert.com The restaurant industry has been hit hard by this pandemic. Six months in some 40,000 restaurants have closed down permanently , with 43% of them being traditional and casual dining restaurants. Having said that the industry is showing signs of recovery, largely because restaurant owners are starting to adapt to the so-called new normal by introducing imaginative strategies. Don’t be surprised if these same strategies inevitably turn into trends, which will help restaurateurs do better in 2021. Here are four to keep an eye on:         1. Changing business models This pandemic has shown the importance of adjusting to the situation. In this case shelter in place measures have necessitated a shift in service focus from dine-in to take-out (or pick-up), and from comprehensive menus to simplified ones. A case in point is Chicago’s Alinea, a three-star Michelin restaurant known for its acclaimed dining experience and intricate, pricey dishe...

  www.mintel.com ,  October 22nd, 2020 The impact of COVID-19 and the recession marks an important moment for restaurant brands to use their brand reputation to enter the grocery space and fill the gap left by a struggling start-up industry.   As COVID-19 restrictions increase across the UK,  restaurants need to adapt to new consumer needs . Below are different ways restaurants can make the most of this opportunity to reach their consumer and survive.  Now is the time for restaurants to enter retail  As a result of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, markets are in flux, and consumer behaviours have dramatically changed. In addition, a heavy economic downturn has already begun, with consumers needing to cut back on their spending. Consumers are more likely to return to the mainstream brands that are more familiar as they look for some semblance of security in this fast-changing scenario . This consumer move is bad news for food and drink s...

  www.thecaterer.com Muse in London, Ocean restaurant at the Atlantic hotel in Jersey, the Ritz London and the Latymer at Pennyhill Park in Bagshot, Surrey, have all been awarded four AA rosettes, while a record 26 premises have received three rosettes. Restaurants awarded three AA rosettes include the Old Stamp House in Ambleside, Cumbria, housed in the former office of William Wordsworth; Frenchie Covent Garden in London, cousin of the original Parisian eatery; and Shaun Rankin's eponymous restaurant at Grantley Hall in Ripon, North Yorkshire. Simon Numphud, managing director at AA Media, said: "This has been an immensely difficult year for the hospitality industry, and yet restaurants across the country have continued to provide incredible dining experiences to the public, despite these considerable challenges. "The dedication and hard work of the teams behind these establishments is inspiring, particularly during this time, and we are pleased to be able to celebrate ...

www.cga.co.uk Pubs, bars and restaurants in areas that are in the upper tiers of the government’s new COVID alert system have suffered an immediate drop in sales, CGA’s latest data shows.  Businesses in the ‘Very High’ alert tier in England—where pubs and bars can only remain open if they serve substantial meals, and people cannot meet with anyone outside their household—saw their daily sales drop between 60% and 62% year-on-year from last Thursday to Saturday (15 to 17 October). While restrictions are slightly looser in the ‘High’ tier, businesses in these areas also saw a significant drop in trading, with sales down between 46% and 54% from Thursday to Saturday.  Licensed premises in the first ‘Medium’ tier fared better after the introduction of the new system, though their sales were still down between 22% and 28% year-on-year between Thursday and Saturday. These figures lay bare the instant and seismic impact of the new tiered system on hospitality,” says CGA group chief ...

Britain’s managed pub, restaurant and bar groups saw sales fall back significantly in September after August’s Eat Out To Help Out campaign boost and the introduction of the 10pm curfew at the end of the month, latest data from the Coffer Peach Business Tracker show. With 88% of group-owned sites reopened, up from 85% in August, total sales across across the whole managed sector were nevertheless 20.3% down on the same month last year, compared to being down just 12.2% in August. Like-for-like sales in those businesses trading were 14.7% below September 2019, having been flat in August. Drink-led pubs suffered the most, with total sales down 22.7% and like-for-likes down 21.1% on September last year. Restaurant groups performed better, helped by the cut in VAT on food and delivery sales, with total sales down 19.6%, but like-for-likes just 6.7% below September 2019, helped by the fact that only 72% of group-owned restaurant sites were open and trading during the month. In contrast almo...

  vegconomist.com As a sign of the times, the UK now sees its first-ever Michelin starred restaurant offering plant-based meat. The Harwood Arms in Fulham London is now serving a vegetarian scotch egg using plant-based bacon produced by THIS , the fastest FMCG business to reach its Seedrs target with the fastest campaign to hit over £1.5m.   Michelin stars are a rating system to evaluate restaurants on their quality: One star signifies “a very good restaurant”, two stars are “excellent cooking that is worth a detour”, and three stars signify “exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey”. For readers outside of the UK, a scotch egg is a British snack originating in Scotland , consisting of a whole soft or hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, wrapped in bread crumbs then deep-fried. Obviously this particular dish is not vegan friendly due to its use of poultry eggs, however it does signify a step in the right direction for high end cuisine in the UK. The London r...

  17th September 2020,  thefoodpeople.co.uk An avocado restaurant is set to launch across multiple locations in the UK, three years after opening in Amsterdam. The Avocado Show doesn't need much more of an introduction, with the name saying everything. The avocado is the centre piece of nearly every dish on the menu. Following its initial conception in The Netherlands, The Avocado Show is preparing for major European expansion with a total of 19 franchise locations agreed across the continent. In the UK, Edinburgh, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Oxford, and Guildford have all been tipped as locations ready to experience what The Avocado Show has to offer. The concept has clearly been a hit so far, riding the avocado wave over the past few years to the tune of nearly 150k Instagram followers, as well as successful sales of an avocado cookbook as well as a range of merch too. https://theavocadoshow.com/