Spilling the beans: How coffee chain Grind has carved out its own London niche January 20, 2020 Given how busy life in the capital can get, and how hard the people here work, most Londoners must live on coffee. It’s the only plausible explanation for the explosion in coffee shops in recent years. Independent coffee houses are thriving alongside the big brands like Costa and Pret a Manger. According to research by [...]
Moving Mountains: How the biggest Alpine construction project in 20 years has transformed Val d’Isere January 17, 2020 The venue is Cocorico, a packed Val d’Isere après ski bar where the music is pumping. BBC Ski Sunday presenter and five times Olympic skier Graham Bell is regaling us of the time he broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest towed speed on skis. Dragged by a Jaguar XF Sportbrake in Sweden, he [...]
We should support Taiwan to the hilt January 17, 2020 Some years ago I did some work that brought me into contact with Taiwan and, more importantly, a small but powerful group of figures in Westminster who had long seen the moral and strategic case for being on the side of Taipei’s government. As a consequence of this fleeting association, I saw firsthand the way [...]
Ostrich shops need to stop blaming the high street and step up January 16, 2020 Stories of failing retailers seem to be as regularly in the news as Brexit or Harry and Meghan. And when we read about them, it’s usually accompanied by lamentation that the state of the high street is to blame. Just this week, City A.M. reported that department store Beales is facing collapse. Its chief executive [...]
Aviva Investors buys Docklands hotel site for £106m January 15, 2020 Aviva Investors’ Lime Property Fund has bought a £106m hotel development site near Canary Wharf. The asset management arm of Aviva has acquired the freehold interest in the site next to Westferry DLR station, where developer Rockwell will build a 30-storey Premier Inn Hotel. Read more: London luxury hotel market booms Whitbread, the owner of [...]
History, views of Nelson and a speakeasy: Inside the new Great Scotland Yard Hotel January 10, 2020 To kick off the new year, a visit to the new Great Scotland Yard Hotel in Whitehall is a great way to see some of the emerging trends in the London design and going out scenes. It is the latest in a series of renovations of civic buildings (police stations, town halls, courthouses) into hotels, [...]
This Veganuary, I’m trusting people to eat what they want January 10, 2020 Welcome to January, the month of new year’s resolutions. Dietary transformation has always been central to the post-Christmas madness — eating “better” is probably the most cliched resolution there is. But whereas this used to be framed primarily in terms of weight loss, with fads like intermittent fasting and protein shakes taking centre stage, in [...]
Weekly Grill: Chris Leach, chef founder of Manteca, on rediscovering bananas and being interrupted by Ross from Friends January 9, 2020 Who are you and what do you do? My name is Chris Leach, and I’m chef founder of Manteca, a new restaurant on Great Marlborough Street, which I’m opening alongside David Carter of Smokestak. We’ve just finished a residency at 10 Heddon Street, so Manteca will be an evolvement of that. Tell us about Manteca Manteca [...]
Chilango CVA: Creditors back rescue plan for struggling burrito chain January 6, 2020 Chilango’s creditors and shareholders have backed a rescue package to keep the struggling Mexican restaurant chain afloat, paving the way for the company to slash rents and exit some leases. Chilango launched a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in early December, which was first reported by City A.M., in a bid to avoid administration. Read more: [...]
Survive a Tier 4 January with these 34 amazing lockdown delivery kits January 1, 2020 With more lockdowns annoucned up and down the country, January is set to be a rather miserable time, especially for those of us who are gastronomically-inclined. Thankfully, you can kill two birds with one stone – supporting your favourite chefs and getting your fix of restaurant-quality food – by ordering some of these amazing home [...]