Can Mayfair’s Park Chinois combine dinner and cabaret and make it good? May 4, 2022 There are lots of things in life that could reasonably be described as ‘a lot.’ Visiting the in-laws can be ‘a lot,’ as can indulging your drunk uncle in conversation when he’s offering his take on cancel culture. Marzipan is also ‘a lot’, and so is trifle. All of these over-stimulating experiences pale by comparison [...]
Boost for embattled hospitality sector: Heineken goes on UK hiring spree as beer giant creates 700 new pub jobs May 3, 2022 Dutch beer giant Heineken has said this morning it will create more than 700 jobs across the UK as part of a £42m investment plan into its pub operation. The brewing company said that 660 pubs – more than a quarter of its Star Pubs & Bars venue business – will be upgraded as part [...]
Exclusive pictures: The City’s newest rooftop destination – with an iconic view May 1, 2022 A new bar is set to get the Square Mile talking when Wagtail opens in a fortnight atop the former House of Fraser store on King William Street. The bar – from the same people as The Botanist and The Aviary – will feature a restaurant and cocktail bar with all-around views of the City [...]
Star studded: Leonardo DiCaprio invests in vegan burger chain Neat April 28, 2022 Plant-based burger chain Neat has launched a Series B fundraise with US investors including Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The cash injection will be used to accelerate the company’s workforce and new product development, as it looks to expand both its restaurant and consumer goods arms. Neat, which already counts racing driver Lewis Hamilton as an [...]
Koko founder on £70m relaunch: ‘Camden’s always gonna have edge’ April 28, 2022 Camden’s iconic Koko venue – closed for three years and the victim of a devastating fire in 2020 – finally reopens tomorrow following a £70m renovation. To put that into context, that’s one fifth of the cost the original contractor quoted for building The Shard. It’s a staggering renovation for the historical venue, which has [...]
Look inside: Coca Cola opens first European flagship store in Covent Garden April 28, 2022 Coca Cola has opened the doors to its first flagship store in Europe today, in a vote of confidence for the West End. After a number of stores in the US, including the beverage titan’s home territory in Atlanta, Coca Cola is testing the waters with a UK experiential destination. The store is set to [...]
Trivet restaurant review: A masterclass in the fine art of simplicity April 27, 2022 When you visit the Fat Duck website you’re greeted by the message: “Welcome questioneer… Are you ready?” Beside this plays a video of a steam train whizzing past a rapidly-growing crystal formation that, like an acid trip, becomes a lime, then a flower. Am I ready? I’m not sure. Scroll down and the restaurant’s famous [...]
Loungers eyes profit ahead of market expectations after post-Omicron rebound in sales April 26, 2022 Bar operator Loungers now anticipates its yearly profit to be “slightly ahead” of market expectations, after a strong performance after Christmas. In a trading update for the year to 17 April, the firm said it “recovered strongly” after a period of “subdued” trading in December, due to the Omicron variant and related Covid measures. The [...]
Heart and Seoul in South Korea, as the nation reopens for tourism April 25, 2022 The baby octopus floats in its tank, blissfully ignorant, until, all too soon, its time comes. The tiny, wrinkled old woman, who, I later learn, has been manning this particular food stall in Seoul’s colourful, noisy, aromatic Gwangjang market for over thirty-two years, yanks it out unceremoniously and whacks it down onto the steel surface. [...]
Burger King plots 200 new UK restaurants as fast food giant eyes whopper £600m London float April 25, 2022 Burger King is eyeing an additional 200 restaurants in the UK over the next four years, after “significant under-penetration” in the country’s market. The burger chain, which has been eyeing a London float since last year, said its adjusted EBITDA nearly tripled to £49.5m. In results for the year ended 31 December, the fast food [...]