Domino’s Pizza Group CEO – ‘we don’t need to acquire a second brand to achieve growth’, ‘franchisees have had to put prices up’: Nicola Frampton, Domino’s Pizza Group’s interim chief executive, has said that the business doesn’t need to acquire a second brand to achieve growth, “as it can effectively access what is the £3bn chicken market under the power of our own brand”. Last September, Domino’s launched the Chick ‘N’ Dip sub-brand, to tap into rapidly growing demand for chicken in the UK. It came after the business, then under former chief executive Andrew Rennie, failed in an attempt to acquire Wingstop UK. Domino’s said it had now ceased all work on leveraging its infrastructure and distribution network to introduce another brand – work which cost the business £6m in transaction costs. When asked about looking at further brands, Frampton said: “Every time, we have concluded they’re not the right fit”. She said that the launch of Chick ’N’ Dip, which is being introduced nationally after a successful trial in north west England and Northern Island, “made us realise that we didn’t need to go and buy a hundred-million-pound brand in order to be successfully accessing the growing chicken market”. She said: “We can effectively access that market under the power of our own brand. We have a 52% share of the £3bn pizza market. The chicken market is similarly sized, and we currently hold just 3.8%. That means our addressable market effectively doubles as we expand into chicken. Chick ‘N’ Dip positions us brilliantly to maximise this growth opportunity. And uniquely, we've activated this across 1,400 stores instantly, with no additional capex, and deliver in around 25 minutes. No other chicken operator can match that level of scale, speed or consistency.” Frampton said 2025 was a “difficult year for all”, with weaker consumer confidence dragging on its order numbers. “Franchisees have had to put prices up,” she told the Press Association. “We’ve worked really hard not to do that, but we’ve had some significant incremental cost flow through the employment changes that came through. A lot of brands have really pulled back – they’ve either put their prices up massively or pulled back on their service. I think we’ve got the balance right in terms of how we’ve approached it.”

 

Propel Multi-Club unveils its second Parallel Session – getting the best deal from government: This year’s Propel Multi-Club Conference series has gone bigger and better with more content. Parallel Sessions will feature at each event, which has now moved to a new, larger premises, The Victoria Plaza, in London’s Victoria. Aside from the full speaker schedule for our next event on Wednesday, 25 March (click here), each conference will host Parallel Sessions of content, which we are unveiling day-by-day. The second one is: getting the best deal from government. With the sector facing uniquely challenging headwinds, UKHospitality chief executive Allen Simpson talks to Fleet Street founder and chief executive Mark Stretton about the delicate process of lobbying government for a better deal, current priorities and how individual multi-site operators can help in putting the sector’s best foot forward. There will be a chance to ask questions about the current UKHospitality agenda with government. There are more than 450 conference attendees already booked. Operators can claim free places by emailing kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com.

 

Premium Club subscribers to receive two updated databases this week: Premium Club subscribers will receive two updated databases this week. The latest Propel UK Food & Beverage Franchisor Database will be sent today (Wednesday, 11 March), at 12pm. The database will feature ten new additions plus updates to existing entries. The database now has 390 entries and more than 239,000 words of copy. Among the new entries are bakery concepts Wenzel’s and West Cornwall Cornish Pasty, and coffee shop brand Hermanos Colombian Coffee Roasters. Premium Club subscribers will then receive the next Turnover & Profits Blue Book on Friday (13 March), at 12pm. The database will feature 13 new companies and 59 updated accounts. The database now features a total of 1,244 companies, with 759 in profit and 485 making a loss. The Blue Book is updated each month and ranks companies by turnover, profit and profit conversion, listing directors’ earnings for the past five years. Premium Club subscribers also receive access to four other databases: the Multi-Site Database, the New Openings Database, the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database and the Who’s Who of UK Hospitality. All Premium Club subscribers will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to Propel paid-for events and discounts on specialist sector reports. Operators that are Premium Club subscribers are also able to send up to four members of staff to each of our four Multi-Club Conferences for free. Premium Club subscribers receive their daily Propel Info newsletter 11 hours earlier than standard subscribers, at 7pm the evening before. They also receive videos of presentations at eight Propel conference events two weeks after they are held. This represents around 100 videos of industry insight over the course of the year. Premium Club subscribers also receive exclusive opinion columns every Friday at 5pm, which include the thoughts of Propel chief operating officer – editorial, Mark Wingett, and a host of industry leaders from across the sector. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a restaurant business currently operating a flagship site in London, with ambitious plans to expand, and is seeking a managing director. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “The position involves adding value to this site and then rolling out the concept across London. The individual will take full responsibility for day-to-day operations while positioning the business for sustainable multi-site growth. The individual will be a London restaurant operator who is comfortable being front and centre in the business while also operating strategically at board level.” The salary is up to £120,000. For more information, email stuart@corecruitment.com

 

Gong Cha owner weighing up possible sale: TA Associates, the private equity backer of Gong Cha, is weighing up a sale of the UK-headquartered, fast-growing bubble tea brand. Bloomberg reports that TA Associates, which acquired a majority stake in Gong Cha seven years ago, is working with advisors at JPMorgan Chase & Co on a deal that could value the brand at around $2bn. Founded in Taiwan in 2006, Gong Cha first expanded overseas in 2009 and has grown significantly to operate nearly 2,200 stores across 33 international markets. In the UK, Gong Cha has 12 locations and last year signed an agreement with Jinziex – a new company led by Diljit Brar, chief executive of Goldex; Azha Rehman, founder and chief executive of Kaspa’s Desserts; and Steve Falle, managing director of WY&SF Ltd – to open an initial 225-plus stores in the UK over the coming years. It said the agreement was an important part of Gong Cha’s global expansion strategy to scale to 10,000 sites by 2032. Earlier this week, the business acquired 170 sites in the US from a master franchisee, the majority of its circa 240 stores in the country. It said the agreement would allow it to eventually strengthen its US franchising system and accelerate its growth, as it targets 1,000 sites there. “Bringing this territory in-house allows us to further sharpen our development strategy and strengthen support for our franchise partners,” said Geoff Henry, the company’s president for the Americas. 

Deliveroo closes sole standalone restaurant Pizza Paradiso: Delivery firm Deliveroo has closed Pizza Paradiso, its first and still only high street restaurant, which it opened in London, in the spring of 2022, Propel has learned. At the end of 2021, Propel revealed that Deliveroo was to launch its first high street restaurant, which it stated would be used to train staff and help it “find better ways to serve our partners”. The site opened three months later in New College Parade, near Swiss Cottage tube station, north west London, under the name Pizza Paradiso. A Deliveroo spokesman told Propel at the time: “Deliveroo will manage a high street restaurant to deepen staff expertise and understanding of restaurant management so we can find new and better ways to serve our partners. Staff will learn about how to manage restaurant dine-in and delivery services. We want to understand restaurants’ pain points with the aim of solving them, and to do this by having a deep understanding of restaurant owners’ mindset.” In the summer of 2024, the company told Propel that it was continuing to use Pizza Paradiso to “test and take learnings on the business across different departments – logistics, advertisement, promotions, reporting etc”.

China’s second-largest coffee chain builds UK pipeline: Cotti Coffee, China’s second-largest coffee chain, which made its UK debut last month with a double opening in London, has begun building its opening pipeline here – with three further sites already secured in the capital, Propel has learned. The business has lined up openings in the City at 99 Gresham Street and 72 Cheapside. Propel understands that it has also secured the former Crussh site in Strutton Ground, south west London, and is believed to be in talks on sites in Birmingham and Manchester. Last month, it opened at 131 Middlesex Street in the City and at 183 Camden High Street. The brand currently has more than 18,000 shops worldwide, making it the third-largest coffee brand across the globe. Luckin Coffee, China’s largest coffee chain, has expanded aggressively in China and overtaken Starbucks on the mainland, with more than twice as many outlets. It currently operates more than 26,000 sites globally. Cotti Coffee, which uses an entirely franchised model, was founded in August 2022 by former Luckin Coffee executives Lu Zhengyao and Qian Zhiya. Zhengyao and Zhiya, were part of the same team who established Luckin Coffee before leaving in 2020 following an accounting scandal. Earlier this year, it launched in Europe, opening its first outlets in France (Paris), Germany (Hamburg, Cologne, Düsseldorf) and Spain (Barcelona and Madrid). There are also plans to launch in Italy, as well as Portugal and the Netherlands.

 

Pizza Pilgrims hires Adrian Vickery as property director: Pizza Pilgrims, the pizzeria brand backed by McWin-backed German pizza and pasta restaurant business L’Osteria, has hired Adrian Vickery, formerly of Azzurri Group and Novus Leisure, as its new property director. Vickery joins the Gavin Smith-led business after stepping down from the ASK Italian and Zizzi-operator Azzurri in November, after 11 years with the company. He spent the past four and a half years at the Coco di Mama and Boojum owner as its head of property. Before that, he spent two years as an estate manager at Novus. His appointment comes as Pizza Pilgrims gears up to open in Bristol and Glasgow later this spring. The company, which currently operates 27 pizzerias across the UK, will open in the former Stanfords site in Bristol’s Corn Street. This will be followed with an opening in Glasgow, at the former Ting Thai site in West Nile Street. Pizza Pilgrims already operates a site in Scotland, in Edinburgh. In December, the company opened a new 92-cover, two-floor site at 278-280 Pentonville Road, in London’s King’s Cross.

 

Admiral Taverns makes largest capex investment to date: Admiral Taverns, which runs 1,350 community pubs across the UK, has re-opened a site in Nottingham after what the company said is its largest capex investment to date. The Fairham, located on Farnborough Road in Clifton, reopened following an investment of £572,832. The pub is part of Proper Pubs, the community wet-led operator division of Admiral Taverns, which operates more than 200 pubs across England, Scotland and Wales. The pub has been revamped to include a brand-new main bar and snug area and includes four flat screen televisions, with Sky and TNT Sports. In addition, the pub hosts a brand-new games area, which includes two pool tables and two dart boards for customers to enjoy. Outside, The Fairham has brand-new lighting, signage, painting and fencing to greet customers as well as three refurbished gardens with two TVs and a pool table to seat 180 people. Matt Gurney, operations director for Proper Pubs, said: “This is our biggest investment to date for Proper Pubs and shows our commitment to becoming the number one community pub operator in the country, bringing people together in local areas and creating vibrant social hubs which support their communities.”

 

Rileys hires Tony Gorbert as new operations director: Rileys, the American and UK sports bar brand backed by Weight Partners Capital, has hired Tony Gorbert, formerly of Rekom and Deltic Group, as its new operations director. Gorbert spent more than 25 years at Deltic Group (formerly Luminar), most of the time as a regional director. He spent three years at Rekom UK, including two years as an operations director. For the past 18 months, he has been working as a consultant for the Scandinavian-based Rekom business. At the start of this year, Propel revealed that Craig Mayes had stepped down as chief executive of Rileys after more than six years leading the business. Mayes, the former director of managed houses at brewer and retailer Charles Wells and ex-operations director at Drake & Morgan, joined Rileys in May 2019. His departure came as the business delivered a 24% increase in like-for-like Ebitda in 2024, rising to £1.6m. The business, which is chaired by Peter Marks, opened a new venue in Albion Street, Leeds, last summer, bringing its total estate to 15 venues nationwide. 

 

Thornbridge JV to open new London pub this month, group returns to profit: Thornbridge & Co – the joint venture between Derbyshire’s Thornbridge Brewery and specialist beer importer Pivovar – will open a new London pub this month. The Wild Swan will launch at 99 Fetter Lane, in the City, to replace the nearby White Swan, which is making way for new office buildings. It comes as parent company Thornbridge Brewery returned to profit in the year to 30 June 2025, following two loss-making years. The group turned a pre-tax loss of £420,565 in 2024 into a profit of £224,796, off turnover of £17,331,839 (2024: £15,358,095). Of this, £13,962,967 came from brewing and distribution (2024: £12,634,875) and £3,368,872 from its pubs (2024: £2,723,220). Further analysis shows £16,771,730 came from the UK (2024: £14,679,222) and £560,109 from overseas (2024: £678,873). Director James Harrison said: “Alongside the strong turnover growth, the return to profit also reflects the cumulative impact of the continued focus on cost control and production efficiency. Although the pub sector continues to face increased taxation and cautious consumer confidence, the pubs delivered another profitable year. This performance was supported by a consistent focus on product quality, customer service and disciplined cost control. The return to profitability in the year ended 30 June 2025 represents an important milestone for the group following a prolonged period of sector-wide disruption and cost inflation. The group is progressing plans to increase overall brewing capacity to ensure it is well positioned to support further growth and capitalise fully on existing and emerging opportunities. The pubs continue to operate in a competitive and cost-sensitive environment, and management remains focused on maintaining disciplined cost control and operational standards across the estate.” Post year end, Thornbridge & Co opened The Fargate in Sheffield and closed The Coach & Horses in Dronfield, Derbyshire.

 

Two potential buyers for Blackpool’s LGBTQIA+ cabaret bar Funny Girls following administration: Two potential buyers are looking to acquire Blackpool’s LGBTQIA+ cabaret bar Funny Girls out of administration, with the venue seeing record trading. A report from administrators FRP, who were appointed in January, showed three parties expressed an interest in acquiring the business and assets and the freehold of the theatre. One offer was rejected while the remaining interested buyers are waiting approval for funds. All potential bidders made clear the continued trading of the business was “essential to retain goodwill, staff expertise, and the venue’s established reputation”. “The administrators intend to proceed toward completion of a going-concern sale as soon as funding confirmation is received and due diligence is finalised with either interested party,” the report said. The business, Ellis Noble Leisure, had debts of £738,372.64, including to Lloyds Bank, Funding Circle and HM Revenue & Customs. The current proposed sale would allow the secured creditors to be paid in full. The report showed having experienced cashflow pressures in early 2025, management took action to improve financial performance, including raising ticket and bar prices. This led to “notable” improvements, with the business seeing record sales of £1,642,000 for the 11 months to 30 November 2025, gross profit of £1,420,000 and a strengthened gross margin. Ebitda for the period was £294,000, with a net profit of £267,000. Trading between April and November 2025 peaked in October, with sales of £231,600 and Ebitda of £68,700. Funny Girls had previously been in administration in 2018, when it was taken over by Thwaites Brewery before founder Basil Newby regained control a year later. The venue has a 1,700-seat auditorium, a 120-cover restaurant, the Level 3 Nightclub and show bar Oscar’s.

 

Rudy’s to open in Sutton Coldfield next week as it expands West Midlands footprint: Rudy’s Pizza Napoletana, the Mission Mars-owned brand, will open in Sutton Coldfield next week. Rudy’s will open a 3,360 square-foot restaurant at 10 Birmingham Road on Saturday, 21 March. Split across two floors, the unit will offer approximately 100 covers indoors and 32 outdoors. As well as Rudy’s authentic Neapolitan pizzas, the restaurant will offer Italian spritzes, Italian and local lager and classic cocktails. The venue will be the 37th Rudy’s location and fifth in the West Midlands and create 20 jobs.

 

We Do Play to open fifth Activate site in London this weekend: We Do Play, the multi-concept experiential leisure operator backed by the Frasers Group, is to open its fifth site in London for Canadian immersive game brand Activate this weekend. The venue will open in Islington Square on Upper Street on Saturday (14 March), offering all of Activate’s signature games such as Strike, Portals, Control, Press, Hide, Laser, Grid, Mega Grid and Hoops. The launch follows hot on the heels of the opening of three new Activates across London in December – in Oxford Street, Westfield White City and Vauxhall – and the concept’s debut UK site, which opened at London’s The O2 in December 2024. Activate also opened its doors at Newcastle’s Metrocentre last summer for its regional UK debut. “Islington Square is a natural fit for our next venue and a strong addition to the neighbourhood’s established entertainment mix,” said Rich Beese, co-founder of We Do Play. “With Islington’s reputation for excellent food, culture and nightlife, it’s the perfect place for us to introduce something new to Upper Street. After the response to our first three London openings, expanding into Islington felt like the obvious next move.” Originally launched in Canada in 2017, Activate has grown to 60 locations across Canada, the US and Dubai, and has attracted more than 750 million social media views worldwide. The brand’s UK expansion is led by We Do Play, which launched concepts including Flip Out and Boom Battle Bar.

 

Azzurri Group reveals further environmental improvement as business grows: Azzurri Group, the hospitality investment platform behind ASK Italian, Zizzi, Coco di Mama, Boojum and Dave’s Hot Chicken, has revealed it is delivering further environmental improvement even as the business grows. Covering the period from 1 July 2024 to 29 June 2025, its annual Sustainable Dining Report showed the group achieved a 7% reduction in carbon emissions intensity, alongside a 4.5% reduction in emissions on a like-for-like basis, despite the expansion of its brand portfolio and estate. The group has made progress in tackling its Scope 3 emissions, with a focus on food and beverage impacts, which represent most of its carbon footprint. During the year, Azzurri reduced food-related emissions by 2,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with the previous year. Alongside environmental progress, Azzurri expanded opportunities for career development, well-being and inclusion across its nearly 6,000-strong workforce. The group also strengthened its commitment to safe and inclusive dining through a new four-year partnership with The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation. The report also marks a milestone year, with more than half of the group’s original sustainability commitments reaching their target dates. Chief executive Steve Holmes said: “Hospitality continues to face real economic and operational pressures, but this year’s report shows sustainability and strong business performance can, and must, go hand in hand. As we reach a key milestone in our original commitments, we’re proud of the progress we’ve made, honest about the challenges we’ve faced, and excited about the next chapter of our sustainability journey as we continue building better food businesses for people and planet.”

 

Business behind food treasure hunt experiences eyes global expansion with crowdfunding campaign: A company that creates food treasure hunt experiences and is aiming to become a “global leader in gamified food tourism” is crowdfunding to support its growth. Gourmaze is raising the funds via the Republic Europe platform and has so far secured more than £435,000 of its £470,000 target. The company is offering 9.46% equity in return for the investment, giving a pre-money valuation of £4.5m. Founded in 2021 by Anish Malhan and Holly Su-Lin Mennear, Gourmaze’s experiences are powered by technology and allow players to solve clues to discover food across a city. “Our vision is to become the global leader in gamified food tourism and transform how people explore cities, spark discovery and celebrate culture”, its crowdfunding page said. Gourmaze achieved “product–market fit” in London and replicated the model internationally, launching in Singapore. The business said it has generated £1.3m in ticket sales and is Ebitda profitable, with 30,000 customers to date. Gourmaze said it sees a “clear pathway to scaling across major global cities” with “strong early traction across two markets and a rapidly growing food tourism sector”. The business said it will use the funding to expand across the UK and enter the US by 2028, as well as scale into Europe and Asia by 2030.

 

Team behind Honey & Co to open new wine bar and deli concept: The team behind Middle Eastern restaurant concept Honey & Co is to open a new wine bar and deli concept. Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich, who operate five sites across London, will open Honey & Co Great Portland on Monday, 13 April – a wine bar, deli and dining room, “where for the first time, the wine list comes first, and the food is shaped around it”. The venue will replace the duo’s Honey & Smoke grill house at 216 Great Portland Street, which will close on Saturday, 21 March. The 40-cover space will be a deli by day and a dining room and wine bar by night. The site will serve as the heart of the wine programme across the whole Honey & Co group, with an expanded list rolling out across all sites – including bottles from Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and beyond. There will also be a menu built around grazing and sharing, with dishes including tuna crudo with grated tomato and tahini; crispy pork with oregano and candied lemon; and fried artichoke with garlic, parsley and lemon. Srulovich said: “When we told our accountant what we were planning with Honey & Smoke, he couldn’t understand why we’d walk away from something so successful. But we’ve never been driven by playing it safe. We want to bring something that excites us, excites our guests and reflects who we are right now, not ten years ago. It is rooted in the food and wine we love most.” The group also operates neighbourhood restaurant Honey & Co in Lamb’s Conduit Street, deli, bakery and café Honey & Co Daily in Store Street, grocery store Honey & Spice in Warren Street (which will close on Saturday, 28 March) and events space Honey & Co Studio in Lamb’s Conduit Street.

 

Laros to open second Manchester site: Greek street food restaurant Laros is to open its second site in Manchester – and first in a customer facing space. The business, which has three sites in Liverpool plus a unit in the Aldow Industrial Park in Ardwick, is taking over the kitchen at The Little B in Sale. Officially launching on Friday, 20 March, the partnership will see Laros permanently take over the kitchen at pub, which was acquired by Blind Tiger Inns last summer. Guests can enjoy Laros’ street food favourites such as gyros wraps, souvlaki skewer boxes, loaded hot boxes and fresh Greek salads. Laros is also launching Greek style burgers for the first time at Little B, including The Laros Burger with feta cheese and sriracha mayo, Grilled Chicken with honey mayo mustard sauce, and the Fried Talagani Cheeseburger with sriracha mayo. Nikolaos Fylladitakis, who founded Laros in 2019, said: “This is a really exciting moment for us. Taking over the kitchen at The Little B allows us to move away from a dark kitchen concept and offer a proper hospitality experience where guests can sit, relax and enjoy authentic Greek street food in a great atmosphere. We’re looking forward to welcoming Manchester guests and sharing Laros with a whole new community.” Laros first expanded outside of Liverpool in 2023, when it opened in Birmingham’s St George’s Street, but that site has since closed.

 

JKS Restaurants alumni to launch neighbourhood bar in London’s Mayfair: JKS Restaurants alumni James Stevenson and Guy Mazuch are to open a neighbourhood bar in London’s Mayfair. Brutes of Mayfair will launch in April, with a menu built around martinis and classic cocktails. The concept is inspired by Bruton Place’s history as a discreet meeting ground for cultural figures, artists and industry insiders. Drinks will be built using a simple martini card, allowing guests to choose base spirit, style and garnish. There will also be ever-changing classic and house cocktails. House serves will include the “Seventh Stall”, combining wasabi leaf vodka, yellow tomato, Brutes hot sauce and mustard seed caviar, and the “Perdedor”, which layers London Dry Gin, Fino en Rama, Miyagawa Mandarin, lemon verbena granita and a Nocellara olive. British beer and a concise wine and Champagne list will complete the offering. A short selection of plates and snacks, designed to accompany the cocktails, will also be available. The space is centred around a 12-seater bar. The duo, who met at JKS Restaurants, have nearly four decades of experience in London’s hospitality scene. Stevenson has led beverage strategy for more than 25 venues, including eight Michelin-starred restaurants, with senior roles at both Fluid Movement and JKS Restaurants, where he oversaw drinks as beverage director. Mazuch began his career at Ronnie Scott’s, later joining JKS as group beverage creative. They said: “At Brutes, we set out to create a bar with a real sense of place, something rooted in London and the street it lives on. It’s the kind of bar we’ve always romanticised, a classic experience brought up to date.”

 

Gary Neville submits plans to restore historic Manchester pub as part of wider St Michael’s development: Gary Neville’s Relentless Developments has submitted plans to restore the Sir Ralph Abercromby pub in Manchester as part of the wider St Michael’s scheme. The proposals include a glassed walkway integrating the pub with the 43-storey tower set to host W Hotel and W Residences. The plans also include a substantial refurbishment of the pub that aims to “honour the building’s heritage”. The pub, which dates to the 1800s, is located between Jackson’s Row and Bootle Street. The pub has remained operational as construction of the £400m flagship St Michael’s development progresses. Subject to planning approval, work on the pub will commence in the coming months, aiming for a planned completion in summer 2027. The first phase of the development, No 1 St Michael’s, opened in November 2025 after it was brought to market in a joint venture between Relentless Developments and KKR. Construction of No 2 St Michael’s is underway, which will provide 75,000 square-foot of office space within the scheme’s 43-storey tower, alongside the 162-room W Hotel and 217 W Residences. Neville said: “The Sir Ralph Abercromby is one of Manchester’s most treasured pubs and an important part of the city’s social fabric. A big part of our ambition for St Michael’s has been to celebrate Manchester’s heritage and restoring this iconic building is central to that vision.”

 

North west sports bar operator acquires third site: North west sports bar operator McNamara's Sports Bar & Lounge has acquired a third site. The business has taken on a 6,381 square-foot unit at Astmoor Industrial Estate in Runcorn on a ten-year lease. McNamara's will use the space as a sports bar, snooker hall and darts academy, joining its sites in Crosby and Ormskirk. McNamara's Sports Bar & Lounge was incorporated in 2024, with Daniel Balshaw, Gerard Canning and Christopher Douglas as its directors.

 

Liverpool aparthotel operator opens third site: Liverpool aparthotel operator SevenStay Group has opened its third site in the city. The company has transformed an empty building at 60 Old Hall Street, joining sites in Bold Street and Fleet Street. The Old Hall Street property includes 44 services apartments, some of which have a jacuzzi bath. An independently run gym offers discounted access to residents during their stay and, in April, its facilities will be further enhanced by the opening of a vegan café, The Wild Root. SevenStay owner Andy Shields said: “Our other aparthotels are in the busy and lively Concert Square area of the city, while 60 Old Hall Street offers a more relaxed alternative, perfectly positioned in Liverpool’s corporate and commercial sector and close to things like the Waterfront Arena and Convention Centre.”

 

London sandwich concept Mondo Sando to open second permanent location next month: London sandwich concept Mondo Sando is to open its second permanent location next month. Launched in 2021 as a pandemic project by Jack Macrae and Viggo Blegvad, Mondo Sando initially held residencies at the Grove House Tavern in Camberwell and The White Horse in Peckham. The business launched its first bricks-and-mortar site at 42 Peckham Road in November 2024 after raising £34,950 from 400 backers on Kickstarter. Mondo Sando will now open at Arch 5, Deptford Market Yards in Deptford, south east London, on Friday, 10 April. Operating predominantly as a grab-and-go location, the venue will also feature a 50-seater outdoor space. The site will offer all the Mondo signature sandwiches and sides, such as the Mondo Frango, Mondo Combo and Everything Cutlet, plus exclusive Deptford-only menu items. There will also be beer, slushies and a rotating range of house soda and lemonade. The founders said: “After many years working in Camberwell, five minutes from Jack’s flat, it’s only fair we open a site in Deptford, five minutes from Viggo’s.” Adam Bowers, of onepoint2, acted on the Deptford deal. 

 

Lancashire café concept opens second site: Lancashire café concept Neighbourhood Coffee House has opened a second site. The business, owned by Preston couple Charlotte Buchanan and Dave Crowther, opened the first Neighbourhood Coffee House last summer, at 462 Blackpool Road in Ashton-on-Ribble – serving up brunch, community events and a children's play corner. They have now launched at The Gatehouse at Lancashire Business Park, Centurion Way, Farington. Buchanan told Blog Preston: “At the bottom of the business park, there's an empty building now that used to be a kiosk, and before that it was a takeaway for food and coffee. We'd been there a few times on the way to the nursery, and we knew there was no one in there, so, we decided to go for it. It's more of a quick turnover, takeaway sort of concept for us. The feedback was that it'd be good if people could order in advance, so we're going to try and set up some sort of system where they can.”

 

Bristol coffee shop opens second site: Bristol coffee shop Two Ways Coffee has opened a second site. The company, which already operates a café in Queens Avenue in the city, has opened in Bond Street. Two Ways first opened in 2019 as an independent neighbourhood cafe run by founders Walter Molinaro and Seda Ozgul. The business has garnered a reputation for homemade food that celebrates the couple's Italian and Turkish roots.

 

New Berlin-inspired döner concept set to open in London: A new Berlin-inspired döner concept is set to open in London. Kiez Kebab will launch in Golborne Road this spring. The streamlined menu will focus on three core kebabs, served in pide bread rather than as wraps, with veal, chicken and a vegan option, paired with sauces, sides and rotating seasonal specials. There is a curated selection of German and Austrian beer, wine and batched cocktails. The space will offer 30 covers with further terrace seating along with a streetside hatch for grab and go. There will also be a weekend DJ programme.

 

Japanese hand-roll focused restaurant concept to open first permanent site: Japanese hand-roll focused restaurant concept Kumori is to open its first permanent site. Following three years of global research, pop-ups and experimentation, founder Marc Flekei is launching the flagship restaurant in London’s Soho in April. The 30-seat venue in Denman Street will see rolls made one by one in front of the customer and served immediately, with options including spicy tuna with jalapeno miso and torched scallop, as well as vegetarian choices. Head chef John Randy De Guzman will oversee the restaurant’s sushi programme and menu development. He was previously head chef at Tobi Masa – the concept by chef Masa Takayama of Masa in New York – and spent nearly a decade at Nobu. Flekei said: “Handroll bars have always been my favourite way to eat sushi, and I felt London was missing that. Soho was chosen for energy rather than prestige. It is one of the few places in London where food, fashion, music, and nightlife intersect naturally, allowing Kumori to exist as both a daily ritual and a destination.”