All interviews – Page 60
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InterviewsYard Sale Pizza: ‘The focus isn’t on making money, it’s on survival’
Yard Sale Pizza co-founder Johnnie Tate has described the company’s current focus as being on survival rather than making money.
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InterviewsAlasdair Murdoch: High street ‘over’ without rent compromise
High street operators cannot be expected to pay pre-covid-19 rents when only open for delivery, Burger King UK CEO Alasdair Murdoch has told MCA.
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InterviewsWhat it’s like to operate in lockdown part 3: Burger King
Burger King UK opened a further eight sites for delivery yesterday, with more to follow in the coming weeks. Discussing the move, CEO Alasdair Murdoch tells MCA how the company has developed a new safety-first operating system, and why being early puts the brand on the front foot against its competitive rivals.
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InterviewsPatty & Bun: ‘How you treat people now will define you forever’
How restaurant businesses act now in terms of dealing with their staff, suppliers and customers will mark them out for the future once the lockdown restrictions have been lifted, Patty & Bun founder Joe Grossman has said.
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InterviewsVita Mojo: Helping Leon, Farmer J and Bone Daddies build a post-covid world
The shutdown of restaurants has ushered in five years of digital innovation in the industry within just a few months, Vita Mojo CEO Nick Popovici has told MCA.
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InterviewsHawksmoor: Crisis shows sector ‘woven into fabric of society’
The coronavirus crisis offers the chance to reassess the “incredible role” the hospitality industry plays in society, Hawksmoor CEO Will Beckett has told MCA’s The Conversation.
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InterviewsLeon: ‘So many people are saying they can’t get food’
Leon managing director Shereen Ritchie has told MCA of the brand’s ambition to reach the vulnerable and elderly as it launches a new grocery and ready meal delivery service today.
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InterviewsKFC’s Jo Tivers: “I love pickled and fermented ingredients - they go so well with the KFC Original Recipe”
KFC’s NPD team lead discusses the success of its Vegan Burger, where KFC plans to take its plant-based menu next and why texture is too often overlooked by product developers.
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InterviewsPaul UK: ‘The brand has huge untapped potential’
The development of a franchise operation for Paul UK is high up on the agenda for its new chief executive Mark Hilton. He talks exclusively to MCA about the development of its new café format, current performance and tapping into the evening day part.
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InterviewsPizza Express: ‘We are starting to experiment with much more interesting flavours’
Pizza Express’ food and beverage director, Jane Treasure, talks to Sarah Sharples about trends coming out of Italy, the pace required in innovation and why meat indulgence isn’t going anywhere.
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InterviewsBrewhouse & Kitchen: ‘Pubs are starting to think more like restaurants’
Brewhouse & Kitchen’s head of food and innovation, Tommy Knight, reveals to Food Spark’s Sarah Sharples some of the dishes coming to the new menu in October, how he is using spent grains to make nachos and the possibility of a beer doughnut ice cream sandwich.
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InterviewsNisha Katona: ‘What is trending is affordability’
The founder of Mowgli chats with Food Spark’s Sarah Sharples about Yogurt Chat Bombs, the four pillars of her business and what’s emerging in the UK’s regional food scene.
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InterviewsWhy Inn Collection set its sight on £1m-plus sites
Following The Inn Colleciton Group’s sale to the Harris family and Kings Park Capital for a reported £300m, MCA revisits a deep-dive interview with MD Sean Donkin, where he details the group’s strategy of buying and building pubs with rooms
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InterviewsCoqfighter: chicken for grown-ups
In the early days of Coqfighter, a senior industry peer predicted that soon enough, they would be forced to ditch the vodka from their chicken batter due to mounting costs. The addition was inspired by Heston Blumenthal, with Coqfighter’s executive chef and ‘mad scientist’ Troy Sawyer using it to make the batter lighter and more crispy.
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InterviewsProfile: Wild things
Mac & Wild’s co-founder Calum Mackinnon talks to Jo Bruce about plans for a new experiential brand, US expansion and capitalising on its retail arm.
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InterviewsStandard Bearers: meet the dream team behind London’s slickest new hotel
Trendy US-owned hotel group The Standard is hoping to rip up the rulebook of high-profile hotel dining with its debut European hotel.
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InterviewsGary Usher: ‘It’s annoying not understanding things on the menu’
Ahead of a documentary tracking the opening of his fifth restaurant in Prescot, the founder of Elite Bistros talks to Food Spark’s Tom Lee about the pros and cons of cookery shows, simplifying menus and the many uses of a konro grill.
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InterviewsGeneration Next: Chin Chin’s nitrogen ice cream
Three-strong nitrogen ice cream specialist Chin Chin has brought desserts made using techniques associated with high-end restaurants to a much wider audience. Sophie Witts reports.
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InterviewsBleecker: Building up a better burger
Bleecker Burger may have one of the best quality burgers on the market – but is that enough? Founder Zan Kaufman grapples with high expectations, relinquishing responsibility and building a culture that goes beyond a world-class burger.
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InterviewsBig Interview: Byron boss on burgers, breakfast and Brexit
It’s fitting that Simon Wilkinson joined Byron Burger as CEO on the first of May, aka Mayday, aka the universal call of distress. Established in 2007, Byron was once a leader in the premium burger space, and it was sold for a very tasty £100m in 2013. But it was subsequently troubled by a combination of new competition and the general malaise affecting the sector and it came close to collapse. In January 2018 it underwent a CVA restructure that saw it close around a third of its 67-strong estate.