Mitchells & Butlers sees food sales soar September 23, 2010 Britain’s biggest pubs and restaurants group Mitchells & Butlers reported a 4.4 per cent increase in sales at outlets open for more than a year driven by a surge in demand for food. The company, which is re-shaping itself into a food-led business, said sales of food increased 7.1 per cent in the nine weeks [...]
THE TIPSTER September 22, 2010 Mitchells & Butlers has lost ground this month despite last week reporting it is paying around £20m for 22 Ha Ha Bar & Grill restaurants. Can today’s trading update, which analysts expect to provide positive news, help lift the stock back up above the 300p level? ShortsandLongs.com has a rolling spread of 294.5p-296.1p. The afterglow [...]
Why go out for dinner when dinner could come to you? September 22, 2010 WHAT’S a hungry banker with a bonus burning in his back pocket to do? Ostentatious displays of wealth just aren’t the done thing anymore, unless you want to risk attracting the attention of marauding bands of bitter taxpayers. But just because a ten course blow-out at your favourite high-end restaurant might be off the menu [...]
Ivy founder in Middle East deal September 20, 2010 Richard Caring, the entrepreneur behind The Ivy, Rivington Grill and Scott’s has signed a joint venture with Jumeirah, the Dubai-based hotels and leisure business. The deal allows Jumeirah to open restaurants under the Caring brands. There is already a Rivington grill in Dubai, which opened in 2008. It is understood Caring’s holding company, Caprice, will [...]
A Sunday lunch that promises to be a perfect 10 September 20, 2010 M elissa Sargin is an events manager at Blueprint Café, one of the host restaurants for the American Express® 10-10-10 event, as part of this year’s London Restaurant Festival. She tells us what this relaxed riverside restaurant has to offer and how they’re celebrating this new event. WHAT IS YOUR ROLE AND WHAT DO YOU [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 19, 2010 THE SUNDAYS The Sunday Telegraph CHEYNE CAPITAL SHUTS EQUITY FUND AFTER POOR PERFORMANCE London-based hedge fund Cheyne Capital has closed a much-heralded equities fund only a year after it opened. The fund, which it is believed was equivalent to around 1 per cent of the approximate £5bn Cheyne has under management, closed after a dissapointing [...]
M&B pub sale brings profit September 19, 2010 PUB and restaurant group Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) will release its fourth quarter results on Thursday, a week after the firm started spending the fruits of its £500m asset sale. M&B, which owns Harvester and All Bar One, is expected to post a profit after more than a year of volatile results. The firm announced [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS September 19, 2010 BLUEBAY Singer Research rates the asset manager a “buy” with an upgraded target price of 400p. The broker sees a second leg of growth available in the emerging markets, and views performance in this region as already ahead of rivals. Overall operating margins should improve from 36 per cent to 40 per cent this year. [...]
Mitchells and Butlers in £19.5m deal for Ha Ha’s September 17, 2010 The Bay Restaurant Group has sold the ha ha bar & grill chain to Mitchells and Butlers for £19.5m. Under the deal Mitchells and Butlers will take over all 22 restaurants on 3 October. Following the sale, Bay will be solely focused on La Tasca, its 70 Spanish tapas restaurants. McQueen advised Bay Restaurant Company [...]
Nando’s to buy burger chain for £30m September 17, 2010 The UK arm of chicken restaurant chain Nando’s has confirmed that it has agreed a £30m deal to buy a rival firm. It plans to take over Clapham House Group, the company behind Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK) and The Real Greek. Nando’s said that Clapham’s brands were struggling in the volatile market and needed its [...]