Grind completes £15m investment round, acquires Bottleshot Coffee: Coffee brand Grind has completed a new £15m investment round, which has been used in part to complete the acquisition of ready-to-drink coffee company, Bottleshot Coffee. The investment round, which values Grind at £70m, is led by existing investor Richard Koch, who also led a £22m investment round into Grind into 2021. The new capital will be used to accelerate growth in the company’s direct-to-consumer coffee business, to acquire Bottleshot coffee and add further Grind high street coffee shops. The Bottleshot brand will wind down and be replaced with Grind cans. Bottleshot Coffee was founded by Annie Mitchell and Charlotte Dales in 2019. It is the first and only canned coffee to win a Great Taste award and can be found in retailers like Wholefoods, Ocado and WH Smith, and on Virgin Airlines. In 2022, the business was featured on Dragon’s Den, where it received an investment offer from Peter Jones. As part of the acquisition, Bottleshot’s Mitchell and Leonora Berend will join Grind to lead its push into the ready-to-drink coffee space, and into grocery and supermarkets for canned coffee, coffee pods and bean and ground coffee. David Abrahamovitch, Grind’s founder and chief executive, said: “Grind had a fantastic 2022, and it’s great to start 2023 with a bang, announcing another major funding round and the acquisition of Bottleshot Coffee. For a while, I’ve believed that the ready-to-drink coffee market is quite under-developed in the UK, particularly compared to the US, and there still isn’t anyone with a real coffee pedigree making a canned coffee product using speciality-grade coffee which actually tastes like real coffee, in part because it can be technically quite difficult to get right. I’ve known Annie for a while. She’s a fantastic entrepreneur, and along with her team, she’s built a great product and supply chain capable of delivering tens of millions of cans per year, and has already signed up some great customers. We think we can take these foundations and supercharge them with the addition of the Grind brand, and of course, by adding Grind coffee to the new cans, we think they’ll taste even better! I’m really excited for Annie and her team to join Grind and lead this new charge.” Last September, Grind opened its first international location, with a coffee shop and bar within Soho House’s venue in Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles. Grind announced its international expansion plans in 2021, with a focus on the US, and the Los Angeles site adds to its nine locations and three mobile carts in London. The group has had a presence in the US since 2020 due to its partnership with Soho House, for whom it is exclusive coffee supplier.

 

Number of cafe operators set to join updated Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies: A number of café operators are among the 15 new multi-site companies being added to the next edition of the Propel Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies, which will be released on Friday, 31 March, at midday. The updated Propel Multi-Site Database, which is produced in association with Virgate, features cyber e-sports cafe SideQuest, which was founded by Shane Harris, and opened its sixth site in Britain, at the Elephant Park development. Also added this month is café concept Fink’s, which was founded by Jess Blackstone and Mat Appleton in 2014, and recently opened its third site, Finks Chatsworth, in Chatsworth Road, Hackney. Premium subscribers will also receive a 3,000-word report on the new additions to the database. The comprehensive database is updated monthly and provides company names, the people in charge, how many sites each firm operates, its trading name and its registered name at Companies House if different. The database features 2,769 companies. Premium subscribers will also receive the next edition of the New Openings Database on Thursday, 6 April, at midday. It focuses on newly announced openings and upcoming launches in the sector and is updated every month. The next edition also includes a 6,000-word report on the new additions to the database. Premium subscribers also receive access to three other databases: the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database; and the Who’s Who of UK Food and Beverage. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £895 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £445 plus VAT for operators and £545 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription. Subscribers also receive access to Propel’s library of Friday Wrap interviews and now also have access to a curated video library of the sector’s finest leaders and entrepreneurs, offering their insights on running outstanding businesses in the sector. Premium subscribers are also to be given exclusive access to the recording and slides to Propel Multi-Club Conferences. Premium subscribers also receive their morning newsletter 11 hours early, at 7pm the evening before; regular video content and regular exclusive columns from Propel group editor Mark Wingett.

John Gaunt & Partners to run licensing and legal drop-in during this week’s Propel Multi-Club Conference: Licensing solicitor John Gaunt & Partners will be running a licensing and legal drop-in during the Propel Multi-Club Conference this Thursday (23 March). John Gaunt partners Luke Elford and Jon Wallsgrove will be on hand to provide advice about any legal issues you or your company may be experiencing. Areas around licensing that may be of interest could be onerous conditions on your premises licence and ongoing costs to them, regulatory issues occurring within your estate, or advice around the due diligence that should be undertaken on acquiring businesses or sites. Please schedule a time for a private chat by emailing LElford@john-gaunt.co.uk.

Dimbleby quits food tsar role over inaction on obesity: Henry Dimbleby has resigned as the government’s so-called food tsar in order to be free to criticise its “insane” inaction against obesity. The co-founder of food chain Leon said the Conservatives would be wise to recall Winston Churchill’s 80-year-old mantra that a country’s greatest asset is its healthy citizens. Instead, ministers had adopted an “ultra-free-market ideology”, Dimbleby said, which meant they refused to impose restrictions on the junk-food industry. He said this was partly to blame for the fact that 64% of adults in England were either overweight or obese, and that the effect on the NHS was crippling. Dimbleby, 52, was lead non-executive director at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for five years until he left last week. He said: “Winston Churchill talked about the greatest asset a nation can have is the health of its people. He understood that. Andy Haldane, the former chief economist of the Bank of England, recently said the biggest problem we have in terms of productivity in this country is illness, and that our workforce is not fit. Yet, somehow, this new version of the Tory party thinks that those aren’t things it should be getting involved in, and it’s just insane. It doesn’t make any sense.” He added that if the problem were not dealt with, “we’re going to be mopping up for years to come”. According to Dimbleby, the Conservative Party has “lost its way”. “There is a concern that dealing with these issues could be seen to be ‘nanny state’ and plays badly in the ‘red wall’ constituencies,” he said. “That isn’t the case, actually, but there is concern that we need to be celebrating the great British diets of fish and chips and curry and beer and that junk food is somehow patriotic.”

Sector condemns government decision to exclude overseas restaurant and bar workers in shortage occupancy lists: Sector leaders have described the government’s decision to not include overseas restaurant and bar workers in its shortage occupation list as “disappointing” amid claims ongoing labour shortages are “crippling” businesses. “Ongoing labour shortages are crippling hospitality businesses, forcing them to reduce their hours and costing the industry billions in lost trade,” Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, told City AM. Nicholls said the trade body provided “compelling evidence and data” to the Migration Advisory Committee’s (MAC) consultation ahead of the finalisation of the list, to prove the sector is struggling to get sufficient employees. It’s understood that a full review of the list is ongoing. She continued: “With shortages in the sector two-thirds higher than pre-pandemic, it’s clear there aren’t enough active people in the economy to fill all the roles we need, despite the extensive work the sector is doing to recruit domestically, including the economically inactive.” It comes as a government advisors in the MAC revealed it had updated its shortage occupation list – allowing international bricklayers and carpenters to get work visas more easily in the UK. However, hospitality, was not included. 

PCA issues guidance to improve tied tenant access to Market Rent Only option: The pubs code adjudicator (PCA) has issued statutory guidance to pub companies “to remove barriers for tenants and ensure a fair and consistent approach to the Market Rent Only (MRO) offer”. While arbitration referrals to the PCA on disputes about MRO terms have “reduced significantly over recent years”, the PCA said it is doing more to improve access to MRO. Following consultation, the PCA has exercised powers to issue statutory guidance, which comes into force from May. This centres around MRO rent information, upfront costs and records of decision-making. The PCA said the guidance must be taken into account in investigating code breaches and taking enforcement action as a result.

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with an event caterer that is looking for an operations director. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “You will be responsible for supporting the managing director with company operations. You will plan and deliver operational functions; manage the recruitment, training and appraisal of current and new staff; work alongside the heads of departments to outline aims and objectives within the set business plan; be a direct report for members of staff identifying training and progression opportunities; be in charge of sales targets for the business; conduct regular meetings with heads of departments, senior management and departments to outline expectations; ensure turnover and profit targets are met; liaise with key clients to build rapport; and oversee systems and processes and improve where required. The salary is up to £70,000 and the position is based in London/Essex. For more information, email emma@corecruitment.com   

 

Clermont Hotel Group draws down £36m loan facility, pays back £55.4m in debentures and £40m in RCF: Clermont Hotel Group, which rebranded from Greater London Hospitality last autumn, said it has drawn down a £36m loan facility but paid back £55.4m in debentures and £40m in revolving credit facility. In its report for the year ending 30 June 2022, the group, which operates 16 hotels, reported turnover of £132,104,000, up from £13,812,000 in 2021. This compares with £244,963,000 in the last full year before the pandemic, ending 30 June 2019. Pre-tax losses narrowed from £71,533,000 in 2021 to £52,508,000 (2019: profit of £1,560,000). Of the 2022 revenue, £94,935,000 came from rooms (2021: £6,654,000); £18,992,000 from food and beverage (2021: £2,842,000); £7,042,000 from meetings and events (2021: £624,000); and £11,135,000 from “others” (2021: £3,692,000). Income of £8.1m came via a business interruption insurance claim (2021: £13.1m). No dividends were paid. The company said: “The group has loan borrowings of £192.7m (2021: £212.4m). During the year, the group made a net draw-down of £36m of the loan facilities (2021: £60m). The group has also repaid £55.4m of the debentures (2021: nil). A net repayment of £40m has been made on the revolving credit facility.” It said there was a “significant recovery in the final quarter” and the directors “expect further recovery in the year ended 30 June 2023”. Room rate continues to be “competitive”, with a predominantly domestic customer base, but is “expected to improve as overseas travel volumes improve”. The impact of the hotels reopening, higher energy prices and inflation contributed to property costs rising to £24.4m (2021: £3.4m). Business rates increased to £14.0m (2021: £2.7m), while a 97% reduction in government grants saw staff costs rise to £36.8m (2021: £11.6m). Clermont Hotel Group features in the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book. Its turnover of £132,104,000 is the 51st highest in the database. The Blue Book ranks companies by turnover, profit and profit conversion, listing directors’ earnings for the past five years. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £895 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £445 plus VAT for operators and £545 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.

Nando’s increases price of bottomless soft drinks by 10p: Nando’s has increased the price of its bottomless soft drinks by 10p. Customers looking to enjoy endless Coke Zero, Diet Coke, Fanta Zero and Sprite Zero will now pay £3.50 under the change. Other soft drink options, such as cordials and cans, remain unaffected by the rise. A Nando’s spokesperson told The Sun: “We continue to work hard to absorb costs wherever we can and are committed to delivering the best value possible for customers. Our bottomless soft drinks have increased by 10p. However, our canned drinks remain the same price.” The announcement follows a 16% increase of some of its menu items in January. Nando’s attributed the rise to the increasing cost of ingredients and the running of its restaurants. However, the spokesperson said it has been “extremely encouraged” by its performance in the current financial year.

True North Brew Co narrows losses: Sheffield operator True North Brew Co has reported turnover rose from £3,712,341 in 2021 to £13,134,667 for the year ending 27 March 2022. This was also up on the £12,590,333 reported for the year ending 29 March 2020, although the final month of trade was affected by the pandemic. Pre-tax losses narrowed from £1,313,111 in 2021 to £411,868 (2020: loss of £548,610). It received £561,486 in government grants (2021: £3,190,026). No dividends were paid. Staff levels rose from 271 to 359. Propel reported in October 2022 that the company had sold The Blue Stoops pub in Dronfield to Chilled Pubs, leaving it with 13 outlets, and that it was working with Christie & Co to reduce its portfolio to ten sites. In his statement accompanying the accounts, director Kane Yeardley said: “Post year-end we have been undertaking a divestment project of loss-making sites. The trading assets of Blue Stoops were sold in October 2022, and an impairment charge of £181,617 has been recognised in these accounts for the loss incurred based on their carrying value when sold. During the year, we have also conducted a sale and leaseback of the Horse & Jockey site to K S Yeardley pension scheme. The three owned pubs in the estate are The British Oak, The Waggon & Horses and the Riverside. At the year, they have been revalued, which has resulted in a £844,792 gain on revaluation.” As well as its 13 trading sites, True North operates a brewery and gin distillery, retail store and online shop, with some limited-edition gins due to be released in 2023. It also has one empty site, The Norfolk Arms in Sheffield, which made a loss of £50,000 in closure costs during the year – mainly in rents and rates.

Vagabond appoints Christobell Giles as new operations director: Imbiba-backed wine bar business Vagabond has appointed Christobell Giles, formerly of Megan’s, Wagamama and Mitchells & Butlers (M&B), as its new operations director. Giles joins the 11-strong business after just over a year as operations director at cafe and deli concept Megan’s. She previously spent a year and a half as commercial food operations director at Hilton. Prior to that, she spent more than five years at Wagamama, including stints as an operations director and change programme director. She also spent more than four years at M&B, including over two years as a retail business manager. Earlier this month, Propel revealed that Vagabond had appointed Rupert Clevely, the founder of Geronimo Inns and Hippo Inns, as its new non-executive chairman. Last month, Propel revealed that Vagabond, which opened a site at Heathrow airport last year, had secured a flagship site in Gatwick airport’s South Terminal for an opening later this year. It has secured the ex-Jamie’s Diner unit at the airport and acquired the former London Bar unit nearby, for a new concept called "South Downs”. 

You Me Sushi to open 19th site this month: You Me Sushi, the London-based restaurant and takeaway concept, will open its 19th site this month. The franchise brand will open at 26 Greenwich Church Street in Greenwich on Wednesday, March 29, near Greenwich Market. Founded in 2008, the company made its regional franchise debut last summer, opening in a former STA travel shop on Friar Street in Reading. It was also the brand’s first site outside of the capital, and it has since opened a second, in the former Stagecoach Travel shop in High Street, Cheltenham. The company is looking to expand its franchise operations in partnership with Seeds Consulting and said last month it is aiming for an eventual estate of 70 sites, with half of them to be open this year. You Me Sushi features in the Propel UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database, an exhaustive guide to the companies offering a food and beverage franchise in the UK. Updated every two months, the database is available exclusively to Premium subscribers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £895 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £445 plus VAT for operators and £545 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.

Sky reports Vue frozen out of Cineworld deal: Sky has reported that Vue has been frozen out of a sale process being run by Cineworld’s advisers, leaving the privately held company unable to pursue discussions about a deal. Vue’s founder, Tim Richards, has been attempting to broker a tie-up between two of the UK’s largest cinema operators, with Cineworld having filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US last summer. Last week, Sky News revealed that the founder of Picturehouse, the boutique cinema chain now owned by Cineworld, was in talks with Vue about buying it back. A sale of Picturehouse could have assisted Vue from a competition perspective given its status as one of Britain’s biggest cinema operators. Cineworld has been running a formal auction of its assets, although it said last month that any sale of its assets was unlikely to realise any value for its shareholders.

The Lancaster Landmark Hotel Company gets ‘breathing space’ with extension of £116m bond from parent company: The Lancaster Landmark Hotel Company said it has received “further breathing space” in a “period of great uncertainty” with the extension of a £116m bond from its parent company. In its accounts for the year ending 31 October 2021, the company said: “During the year, the company extended the term of a £116m bond issued to LOOJ, its intermediate parent company, until 31 October 2023, at a discount equivalent to a rate of 3%. Following the year end, a part repayment of £28m was made, and the balance of the discount bond was rolled over until 31 October 2024 at an equivalent rate of 4.5%. This provides the company with further breathing space in what is generally a period of great uncertainty. At the year end, the company was owed £95m (2020: £100.5m) by its fellow subsidiary, Landmark Hotel London, principally in respect of the previous sale of certain assets to that company. The loan is interest free and repayable 12 months after written notice to repay has been provided.” It comes as the company reported turnover of £10,924,000 for the year, down from £15,113,000 in 2020. Pre-tax losses narrowed from £10,632,000 to £8,362,000. In the last full year before the pandemic, ending 31 October 2019, turnover was £38,355,000 and pre-tax losses stood at £1,085,000. It received £1,720,000 in government grants (2020: £2,875,000) and £1,707,000 in a pension settlement. Director Paul Stockton, in his statement accompanying the accounts, said: “Towards the end of the year there were nascent signs of a durable recovery as occupancy rose to more than 45% but Omicron took the shine off the run up to Christmas. Subsequently, the hotel has seen a further improvement in fortunes as confidence has returned to the market, and there was a return to profitability in 2022 and 60% occupancy for the 2022 financial year was achieved, accompanied by increased average room rates, which saw gross revenue for the year slightly exceed pre-coronavirus 2019. Strong cost control resulted in net profits of close to £2.2m. Thereafter, the company is expected to increase net profits further in 2023.”

Just Eat launches partnership with Iceland: Just Eat has launched a grocery delivery partnership with Iceland. It will initially launch with more than 200 Iceland sites by the end of April, with more than 5,000 products available to customers in locations including London, Manchester, Belfast and Leeds, with plans to roll out to many more towns and cities across 2023. Just Eat’s grocery estate in the UK has seen rapid growth, expanding to more than 2,500 sites on the platform in the last year, to meet consumers’ growing demand for convenience grocery. Amy Heather, director of strategic accounts at Just Eat, said: “Our partnership with Iceland is another big step in our grocery delivery journey in the UK, bringing even more convenient grocery options to our customers.” Justin Addison, international and wholesale director at Iceland Foods, added: “At Iceland, our customers are our priority, and we consistently hear they want more convenient access to our products – both on high streets across the UK and from the comfort of their homes. We are excited to be partnering with Just Eat, enabling us to expand our offering with instant delivery at the click of a button.” Just Eat Takeaway already supports more than 30,000 grocery and convenience stores on its platforms globally. 

Bean Coffee Roasters to upsize for second time: Property landlord Grosvenor has announced that Liverpool-based coffee company, Bean Coffee Roasters, will be upsizing and relocating within Liverpool ONE. Launching its new brand concept on College Lane, it marks Bean’s second upsize at the destination within the space of a year. Having evolved from an initial pop-up at Liverpool ONE in 2021 to debuting its first permanent space last year, Bean is now set to build on the success experienced at the destination, moving into a 4,361 square-foot space. Due to open in May, the new location will enable Bean to meet consumer demand, deliver an optimised customer experience and implement its new sustainable practises. It will accommodate up to 150 guests, set out over two floors, and feature distinct areas including relaxed dining and co-working zones. A new brew bar will play a central feature, as well as enabling guests to spend time with a specialty barista, learning about the coffee’s origins and new recipes to try at home. 

 

South London operators set to open fourth site: South London operators Julian Porter and Lauren Johns will open their fourth site next month. The duo – who operate Tooting-based brunch spot Juliets Quality Food, Balham’s Milk Cafe and Juliet’s Cafe & Bar in Clapham – will open Leo’s, in Lower Clapton, in April. They have teamed up with chef Giuseppe Belvedere for the new bar and restaurant, in the former Jim’s Cafe site at 59 Chatsworth Road. The daytime menu will draw from old-school Italian cafe staples, and in the evening, it will turn to “elegant, simple food cooked over our wood hearth in the dining room”, reports Hot Dinners. Sunday lunches will include whole racks of lamb roasted slowly over wood, with potatoes roasted in the embers overnight, while the drinks will be focused on a largely Italian low-intervention list.

 

New restaurant explains why it’s had to increase prices a month after opening: A new restaurant in Bristol’s Redland area has spoken out after it has been forced to raise its prices just over a month after opening. A.B.O.E, on Whiteladies Road, has received supportive messages from its customers. A.B.O.E opened in February, fronted by Michelin-trained chef Seb Merry, at the former Flipside cocktail bar, where he previously ran the concept as a successful pop-up. The new restaurant fuses classical cooking with south-east Asian influences, with unique offerings such as cheese doughnuts and oysters with chicharron, blood orange and jalapeno. In a statement shared on Instagram, the restaurant said: “It goes without saying that we’re living in expensive times, and we’re all feeling the impact of the multiple different crises we’re being faced with currently, be it cost of living, energy or Brexit, and sadly, the hospitality industry is no different. Opening a restaurant is never going to be an easy task, especially in times like these, and whilst we’ve tried to keep costs down as much as possible, we did want to address some feedback we’ve had regarding our costs. A huge part of our ethos is using independent, local suppliers, in a bid to not only support the local economy, but also to reduce our carbon footprint – something we're hugely proud of – but that does mean the cost of our produce is higher and has only increased in light of the current climate. We’re also committed to paying our staff fairly, and above the minimum living wage. A career in hospitality is hugely rewarding, but it can also be hard work, and we feel our team should be paid in line with the amazing work they do. Since opening, we’ve had a very small amount of feedback regarding our portion sizes. Rather than reduce our portion sizes in line with rising costs, we’ve kept portions the same but have added a slight increase to the price of our dishes – something that is being seen across the hospitality industry at the moment. We know the majority of our customers appreciate and support this, so we wanted to clear things up as, after all, honesty is always the best policy.”

Family-owned Hertfordshire hotel business sees profits soar as revenue passes pre-pandemic levels: Family-owned Hertfordshire hotel business AB Hotels saw its profits soar in the year ending 30 October 2022 as revenue passed pre-pandemic levels. The company, which operates Sopwell House in St Albans and The Arch London in Archway, north London, reported turnover of £16,948,478, up from £9,872,192 in 2021. It is also up on the £12,544, 215 reported in the last year before the pandemic, ending 27 October 2019. Pre-tax profits increased almost three-fold from £887,576 in 2021 to £2,386,671 (2019: loss of £936,372). No dividends were paid. The company received no government grants (2021: £1,007,263). In his report accompanying the accounts, director Abraha Bejerano said: “Due to the continuing issue of labour shortages in the industry as a whole, combined with significant wage inflation, payroll and staffing levels in some departments continued to be a big issue. Adjustments continue to be made to the way we do things to overcome this and ensure it does not restrict our continuous push for growth and improvement.” Investment in Cottonmill Spa, at Sopwell House, “paid dividends” and “helped drive a good year of leisure business”, enabling prices rises to be “tolerated by customers in the wake of huge increases in our running costs”. It also launched a new Asian dining experience and refurbished 20 bedrooms, with further bedroom work planned later this year. Bejerano added: “Food cost inflation has also hit unprecedented, extraordinary levels, with historic equivalent annual rises happening on a weekly basis. Suppliers from all areas of the supply chain are regularly announcing 30% to 50% price rises. This again has put pressure on our margins and led to many of the price increases that we have had to pass on to our customers.”

Danieli Group gets go-ahead to open Stack venue in Middlesbrough: North east operator Danieli Group has been given the go-ahead to open a venue for its Stack container leisure venue concept in Middlesbrough. The company last year unveiled its plans to create the venue at the undercroft, where the A66 flyover meets Exchange Square. The scheme – which will be in place for three years – will use 25 shipping containers and create a central plaza with seating, along with six street food stalls, three bars and a stage for live entertainment. The venue has now been granted planning permission by Middlesbrough Council and Danieli Group is seeking operators for the site. Neill Winch, chief executive of Danieli Group, said: “We know Stack Middlesbrough will be a huge asset to the area and bring a new dimension to the town’s leisure offering. We are looking forward to getting work under way, and also hearing from anyone who can help us achieve the exciting and unique food offering that Stack is renowned for. We are keen to hear from people who can deliver exciting and modern street food.” This will be the second investment by Danieli Group in Middlesbrough, following on from its proposal to transform the former Banking Hall at Commerce House at the corner of Exchange Square into a new branch of its pan-Asian restaurant, The Muddler. The company also operates Stack Seaburn in Sunderland and is planning schemes for Newcastle, Durham, Bishop Auckland, Carlisle and Lincoln.

Former Farewell Cafe owner opens new north London wine bar: Former Farewell Cafe owner Leonardo Leoncini has opened a new north London wine bar, with a focus on Italian wines. Leoncini ran Farewell Cafe – which hosted pop-ups like Ling Ling and Hot4U – with co-founder Edy Piro in Green Lane, Highbury, until it closed in 2021. He has now opened another site in Highbury, this time at the former Light Eye arts space at 176 Blackstock Road. The 20-cover Giacco’s, which is named after Leoncini’s grandfather, will also offer charcuterie and cheese from small producers in Italy, which are joined on the menu by filled focaccia and fresh pasta. Running as a cafe and bottle shop during the day, it will offer small plates in the evening alongside low-intervention wine list. There will also be homemade small batch gelato, plus cakes from Forno in Hackney, reports Hot Dinners.

New Birmingham development to feature 40,000 square feet of hospitality space: A new Birmingham city centre development is set to feature 40,000 square feet of hospitality space. Developer Hammerson has been granted planning permission to redevelop a former department store in Grand Central into a 200,000 square-foot workplace and leisure hub called The Drum. The ground floor will feature “a combined hospitality space” with a restaurant, bar and food market, alongside a gym, well-being amenities and flexible events space. There will also be a rooftop garden lounge.

London stuffed pita bread concept set to make bricks-and-mortar debut: Stuffed pita bread concept Souvlaki Street, which has operated out of various London markets over the past nine years, is set to open its first permanent site. Founders Evi Peroulaki and Conor Mills started serving souvlakis at Hackney’s Chatsworth Road Sunday market in 2014 before trading at various other street food markets across the capital, including four years at Pop Brixton until September 2022. It also introduced DIY souvlaki kits for delivery during the pandemic. The company is now to set to open a bricks-and-mortar site at 18 North Cross Road in East Dulwich, just down the road from one of its temporary sites, at North Cross Road market. As well as selling handmade Greek pitas with a variety of fillings, it will also offer Greek lager and soft drinks, reports Hot Dinners.

Stoke-on-Trent Greek bakery concept to open second site: Stoke-on-Trent Greek bakery concept Anasma Greek Bakery, owned by Marianna Anastasiou, is set to open a second site. Anastasiou, who opened Anasma at 7 Queens Court, Newcastle-under-Lyme, two years ago, is branching out to open a bakery-come-taverna at The Trentham Estate, in April. The new venue will be more than three times bigger than the current bakery and open all day, offering pastries for breakfast, traditional Greek and Cypriot lunches and meze-type food in the evening. “Our food is incredibly popular in Newcastle, but it’s such a small place that we can’t offer anything more than we already do,” Anastasiou, who runs the bakery with husband Costas, told the Stoke Sentinel. “At Trentham, we’ll be able to serve everything our customers already love, as well as new things such as kleftiko, a slow-cooked lamb dish, which will be on the evening menu.” The new Anasma will open on the site of the former Riverside café, which closed last month. “It was a bit of a spontaneous decision to open at Trentham, but our customers had been asking for somewhere bigger for a while,” added Marianna. “It is a big step, but we think Trentham is a great place for us to be and we hope to welcome many more customers to try our food.”