Tchenguiz’s former tapas chain part of £100m sale
THE group behind La Tasca and the Ha Ha Bar and Grill chain could raise £100m when it is put up for sale.
The Bay Restaurant Group – which was once part of property tycoon Robert Tchenguiz’s empire – is understood to be being eyed by private equity-backed investors.
Interest is set to increase after a restructuring that will see the group transfer its Slug & Lettuce pub chain to the Town & City Pub Company, a move that will leave Bay as a purely food-led operation.
The restructuring is believed to have been prompted by the news that Bay’s chief executive, Paul Symonds, will leave at the end of the month to pursue his own acquisitions in the leisure sector. Both groups are controlled by Icelandic bank Kaupthing which acquired them in a debt for equity swap with the previous owner.