Hawksmoor operator reports profit leap: Hawksmoor operator Underdog Restaurants has reported turnover rose to £25,566,000 in 2013, up from £18,070,000 the year before. Pre-tax profit climbed to £3,715,000, up from £1,346,000 the year before. Underlying Ebitda rose to £4,792,00 from £2,686,000. The company stated: “The primary drivers of the improved performance (came) from strong like-for-like sales in the existing restaurants together with the inclusion of a full-year trading for the restaurant in Air Street which opened in late 2012. The directors expect the results to continue to reflect the business’s growing popularity and successful branding.” A minority stake in the business was sold to Graphite Capital in July 2013 for a reputed £35m. Hawksmoor founders Will Beckett and Huw Gott opened their first site in 2010. The four-strong group includes restaurants in Air Street, Basinghall Street (Guildhall), Langley Street (Seven Dials) and Commercial Street (Spitalfields). At the end of last year, the pair announced last week that a fifth Hawksmoor, to be called Foxlow, will open on St John Street, Clerkenwell, in November. In 2012, Graphite invested £21m in Rex Restaurant Associates, the group led by Chris Corbin and Jeremy King that includes the Wolseley, the Delaunay and Brasserie Zedel – it also has a stake in Laine Pub Company, led by Gavin George.

Vapiano doubles UK pre-tax profit: Vapiano, the German brand headed by Phil Sermon, has reported that turnover rose to £7,532,648 at its two UK sites in 2013, up from £6,584,200 the year before. Profit before tax rose to £760,78 from £373,633 the year before. The company opened its third site on Wardour Street, Soho in June this year. Its first two site are in Great Portland Street, which opened in June 2008 and Bankside, which opened in 2011. In 2013, gross margin rose to 45% from 44% the year before. The company stated: “Trading performance remained strong and the directors look forward to the business growing its revenues further in the coming year.” The German-based group has over 140 restaurants across 26 countries world-wide. Vapiano spent £2.1m on its latest opening, which has 7,000 square foot of space, providing capacity for up to 250 diners.

Smith & Wollensky to run London venue for a year before looking at more international roll-outs: Smith & Wollensky, the high-end American steak restaurant chain, will run its planned new central London restaurant for a year before deciding whether to go for more international roll-outs, the company has revealed. Michael Feighery, the Boston-based company’s chief executive, talking to Restaurant Hospitality about the 300-cover, 15,000 sq ft restaurant due to open next spring in the Adelphi Building on John Adams Street, just off The Strand, said: “I think the dining segment is so diverse in London that we will be a good fit. We will run this for a year, see what the challenges are and be selective about where we go. I receive a call about every week from international landlords who want us to be part of their projects. We will have some challenges working 3,000 miles away, but have some good partners and we’ve brought in a former regional manager to oversee the project.”