RACEHORSE OWNERS DO THE DOUBLE AT GREEN’S October 20, 2011 IT HAS been two years since Lloyds Bank on Cornhill became the City outpost of Green’s. And to mark the occasion, the restaurant’s co-owner Simon Parker-Bowles threw a “double celebration” for his horse racing associates at the mezzanine Runner Bar. Double, because Parker-Bowles also unveiled the collection of silks donated by his friends: the colours [...]
Learning to cook El Bulli-style October 19, 2011 The Family Meal: Home cooking with Ferran Adrià Ferran Adrià £19.95, Phaidon WHERE the allure of Jamie Oliver’s and Nigella’s books comes from the idea that you’ll cook like them, “The Family Meal” is less “cook like Ferran”, but “eat like Ferran”. The recipes are a fresh insight into the working life at the now [...]
Following Soho’s Norman invasion October 19, 2011 RUSSELL NORMAN was the former operations director at Caprice Holdings, where he launched concepts such as the Ivy Club with Mark Hix, chef director at the time. He left in 2008 to set up Polpo, a Venetian bacaro, which serves small Italian plates in an informal setting. Following Polpo’s success (which was recently named 25th [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 18, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES FRANCE WARNS OVER EURO CRISIS France has warned that European unity would be at risk if Eurozone leaders failed to take bold action to tackle its sovereign debt crisis at a crucial summit this weekend. President Nicolas Sarkozy said leaders will take “very important decisions in the coming days” and said the destruction [...]
Whitbread in dividend hike as profits lift October 18, 2011 WHITBREAD yesterday reported forecast busting first-half pre-tax profits and ramped up its interim dividend. The performance of its Premier Inn and Costa Coffee chains fuelled the rise. Whitbread, which also operates the Beefeater and Brewers Fayre pub restaurant chains, said underlying pre-tax profits rose 15.2 per cent to £174.9m in the six months to 1 [...]
Whitbread beats target and hikes dividend October 18, 2011 Britain’s biggest hotel and coffee shop operator Whitbread reported higher-than-expected first-half pre-tax profits and ramped up its interim dividend by over 50 per cent. Whitbread, which operates the Premier Inn and Costa Coffee chains, said underlying pre-tax profits rose by 15.2 per cent to £174.9m in the six months to 1 September against a consensus [...]
Less dough for better bread October 17, 2011 Bread Street Kitchen One New Change, St Paul’s, EC4M 9AF, 020 7592 1616 breadstreetkitchen.com FOOD **** SERVICE ** ATMOSPHERE **** Cost per person without wine: £45 YOU’D do well to forget that Bread Street Kitchen is owned by Gordon Ramsay. The restraint of his high-end restaurants is nowhere to be seen in the latest addition [...]
There can be only bubbles for a new arrival October 17, 2011 HEAD SOMMELIER AND MANAGER OF LUTYENS RESTAURANT THIS has been quite a week. I hope that you’ll forgive me if I start by thanking the wonderful staff of St Thomas’ hospital for the birth of my son. A new arrival is an event to celebrate so, with that in mind, I’m going to take a [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 16, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES CHOPPY MARKETS THREATEN EMI SALE Turbulent financing markets could derail Citigroup’s attempt to sell EMI, according to people close to the $3bn-plus auction who warned that the US bank could abandon the sale if it cannot squeeze higher offers from bidders. The bidding process remains fluid, with Citigroup expected to decide within two [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS October 16, 2011 WHITBREAD Analysts at UBS say Costa and Premier Inn owner Whitbread, which reports first half results tomorrow, is its most preferred stock in the leisure and tobacco sector. The investment bank is forecasting revenues of £889m, ebitda of £183m, and earnings per share of 69.6p. Whitbread’s restaurants continue to drag down on growth but Costa [...]