Restaurants News – Page 48
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NewsOttolenghi begs to be shut down
Chef and restaurateur Yotam Ottolenghi has said the tier 2 restrictions imposed on London have seen year-on-year takings at his six London restaurants fall by between 80% and 90%.
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NewsLussmanns permanently closes Tring
Lussmanns Sustainable Fish and Grill has announced the permanent closure of its Tring restaurant.
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NewsJeremy King: Tier 2 leaves London in ‘no man’s land’
Tier two restrictions are the “worst of both worlds”, according to Jeremy King, as he revealed his West End restaurants were down 50% on Monday on the previous week.
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NewsWest End endures ‘horrendous’ first weekend in tier 2
West End bar and restaurant operators have warned that they will not survive the winter after the “horrendous” first weekend of the capital’s tier 2 restrictions triggered tens of thousands of cancellations.
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NewsGDK pushes on with 2020 expansion
German Doner Kebab has announced plans to open 12 new restaurants across six major UK cities before the end of the year.
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NewsAbokado appoints administrators
Healthy to-go brand Abokado has appointed administrators having been unable to reopen the business due to ongoing uncertainty caused by the coronavirus crisis.
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NewsGordon Ramsay Burger to open in Harrods
Gordon Ramsay Burger is to open its first UK site in London’s Harrods before the end of the year.
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NewsMegan’s secures Surbiton site
London-based all-day dining concept Megan’s has secured its ninth site, in Surbiton.
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NewsHospitality Leaders Poll: Confidence remains low as curfew continues
Some 64% of operators would rather shut down for a ‘circuit-breaker’ now if it meant they could open as usual over Christmas, according to the latest Hospitality Leaders Poll carried out by Lumina Intelligence for MCA, the MA, Big H and Restaurant. However, even those that would prefer that option said it wouldn’t be possible without government support, while others said there was no guarantee it would be effective and Christmas trading may be impacted anyway. “It is unlikely to be temporary,” said one operator. “The last lockdown had to last months to have the desired effect, what is the case for a two-week circuit-breaker being a miracle solution?”
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NewsLoungers trading well post-reopening
Loungers has released a trading update saying since reopening on 4 July the Group delivered like for like sales growth of 25.1%. All of its 168 sites are trading and it plans to open three more before the end of the year. “I am delighted with our continued excellent trading which reflects the resilience of our brands and fantastic performance of our team working in very difficult circumstances,” said CEO Nick Collins. ”Loungers, and the sector more broadly, have gone to considerable efforts to ensure the safety of our teams and customers.
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NewsOnline sales soar at Domino’s
Online sales now account for 95% of sales in the UK, Dominos has said in its Q3 trading update.
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NewsFulham Shore predicts a promising future
Fulham Shore has said sales were up 7% to £68.6m before the full impact of the coronavirus as it revealed its results for the year to March 2020. It opened seven Franco Manca pizzerias and two Real Greek restaurants. It currently has 68 of its 70 restaurants open, including one new Franco Manca site, taking the total to 52. It said the business has “emerged in robust shape from this critical period” and without the coronavirus sales would have “exceeded market expectations”. “Franco Manca and The Real Greek are popular with the public,” it said. “Fulham Shore is well capitalised and we have ample headroom in our borrowing facilities.
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NewsTop of Mind survey - let us know what you think?
The Lumina Intelligence Top of Mind business leaders survey 2020 is now underway and MCA, along with sister titles from the William Reed group, is keen to gauge sentiment from across the industry – directly from you. We’re looking for business leaders from across the hospitality and grocery retail sectors ...
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NewsComptoir hoping to emerge stronger
Comptoir has revealed its results for the six months ended 30 June 2020. It said sales at the 24-site chain were down 61.4% to £6.1m while gross profits were down 61% to £4.5m. “There is no hiding from the fact that we are facing unprecedented times across UK hospitality, and with that, market conditions will inevitably continue to be challenging for our business,” said non-exec chairman Richard Kleiner. ”However, I am greatly encouraged by the strength of the Comptoir brand with its excellent quality, healthy food served in the safest possible environment, whilst retaining the genuine feel of family and friendly hospitality that forms the very heart and soul of our offering.
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News'Feeble' employment market demands government support
UK Hospitality has warned that 500,000 jobs are at risk without further support from the government. Yesterday the ONS revealed unemployment hit 4.5%, the highest figure since 2017. “The feeble nature of the employment market is worrying in and of itself, but it masks a much larger worry for the country,” said UK Hospitality CEO Kate Nicholls. “Furlough support is about to end and we are moving onto a Job Support Scheme that will not work for many of our businesses. Our sector is being forced to operate under crippling restrictions, so to pay staff for more than hours worked is an unachievable ask for many venues. Unless support is forthcoming, the outlook is only going to get bleaker.
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NewsTRG’s remuneration and share plan overhaul approved
The Restaurant Group’s proposed new remuneration policy and restricted share plan has been approved by shareholders.
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NewsMcDonald’s global sales still in decline
McDonald’s has started to see a modest recovery across its markets, though global and UK sales are still down.
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NewsCoqbull comes to Soho
Ireland-based chicken and burger concept Coqbull is to launch its first English site next month in London’s Soho.
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NewsWhich Wich launches delivery kitchens
Which Which, the US sandwich chain, is expanding its UK operations with the launch of two new dark kitchens, in Battersea and Bethnal Green.
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NewsAnalysts Verdict: The Restaurant Group
J.P. Morgan: We expect a positive market reaction to Restaurant Group’s 1H results. The Group shows it is taking decisive action with its restructuring plan exiting underperforming sites and agreeing improved rental terms with landlord and airport partners. Trading performance post-lockdown is encouraging with Wagamama and Pubs seeing solid LFL growth and outperform their markets, while Leisure has traded in line with the market, and Concessions’ sales being ahead of the passenger declines. In response to COVID-19, costs have been reduced and liquidity has been improved with ND of c.£311m being better than management earlier anticipated. We update our model, reducing forecasts and hence lower our Dec-20 DCF based price target to 110p. Remain OW.