Oh (dough) balls: Twitter’s scared Pizza Express will fold like a calzone October 7, 2019 Pizza Express fans were thrown into panic today following reports the restaurant chain has called in financial advisers over its mounting debt pile. The firm has hired advisers from Houlihan Lokey ahead of talks with creditors, while a group of secured bondholders has tapped Perella Weinberg Partners, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. [...]
Can Gordon Ramsay hit gold again on the site of Maze with pan-Asian eating house Lucky Cat? October 4, 2019 Ten years and several lifetimes ago, Jason Atherton was heading up the kitchen at Gordon Ramsay’s Maze. Back then, Ramsay could do no wrong. He was decorated with more Michelin awards than he could comfortably carry up a flight of stairs, owned lauded restaurants from New York to Tokyo, and was the sweary star of [...]
Weekly Grill: Executive chef of Bōkan Restaurant in Canary Wharf Guillaume Gillan on how to improve your knife skills October 4, 2019 Who are you and what do you do? My name is Guillaume Gillan, executive chef of Bōkan Restaurant in Canary Wharf. Tell us about your new menu We’ve just launched our new three course Early Sunset Dockyard menu. It’s seasonally led so changes every couple weeks, and is served from 6pm to 7.30pm, giving guests front row [...]
Deliveroo losses deepen in expansion drive October 2, 2019 Deliveroo deepened its losses last year despite soaring sales as it pushed forward with expansion plans. The food delivery app said losses before tax were £232m in 2018 from £199m the previous year. Global sales increased by 72 per cent to £476m for the year. Read more: Deliveroo ad banned over misleading claim it could [...]
The story of the world’s best beef: How Kobe conquered the globe October 2, 2019 Wedged between the Rokko mountain range and Osaka Bay, Kobe is the sixth largest city in Japan with more than a million and a half people. Its namesake beef doesn’t come from the city itself but from the surrounding farmland of Hyogo Prefecture where Kobe is the capital and the key port. As the story [...]
Diversity can prepare City firms for uncertain times ahead October 1, 2019 City bosses need to keep the issue of diversity and inclusion high on their agenda as the UK heads into uncertain times and use it as a tool to both leverage opportunity and improve resilience, according to a panel of experts. In the first of a series of events hosted by City A.M., executives from three of the City’s largest [...]
Jamie Oliver bags £5.2m payday despite restaurant chain collapse September 30, 2019 Jamie Oliver took home £5.2m last year as his business empire suffered a slump in profit following the collapse of his restaurant chain. The chef’s food and media business increased sales to £43.5m in the year to December 2018, but pre-tax profit almost halved to £7.8m. Read more: SSP buys three Jamie Oliver restaurants saving [...]
Alone again? Cities can drive connection in an isolated world September 30, 2019 Walking across London Bridge in the morning is to feel part of a truly connected and global city. The sheer diversity of ethnicities and languages would make it difficult to say in which country this city lay. Most buildings host coffee shops and restaurants bustling with people. Offices are increasingly occupied by small businesses with [...]
Sushi stalwart Itsu posts loss as it eyes expansion in the US September 29, 2019 Sushi chain Itsu fell to a pre-tax loss of £6m last year as stronger sales were offset by expansion in the US. The British food chain, which was founded by Pret a Manger tycoon Julian Metcalfe, pulled in revenue of £116m, up nine per cent on the previous year. Read more: Restaurant insolvencies jump by [...]
Focus on Wapping: First-time home buyers are taking advantage of City connections and ‘sensible’ prices September 27, 2019 Located on the north bank of the Thames just to the east of Tower Bridge, Wapping is one of the few remaining postcodes where you can snap up a flat within walking distance of the City without a completely eye-watering price tag. Formerly the domain of dock workers, large swathes of the area have been [...]