Monday 22/6/15

Morningadvertiser.co.uk: Protection needed against ‘malicious’ online reviews

By Oli Gross, 19-Jun-2015
Licensed retailers are calling for protection from malicious online reviews after a report concluded that many may be unlawful.

http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Running-your-pub/Marketing/Protection-needed-against-malicious-online-reviews

Propelinfonews.com: Ssoosh lnns looks to expand after re-investing in Leicester city centre site: Leicestershire independent multi-site operator Ssoosh Inns, which operates two Everards sites, has completed a substantial investment into its Leicester city centre venue, The Rutland & Derby – Pub, Kitchen & Garden – to celebrate the fifth anniversary of operating the business. The investment has seen a complete refurbishment of the pub only three years after its last substantial investment. It has included the creation of a new open kitchen as well as a first floor food preparation kitchen, environmentally efficient restrooms and brand new beer dispense. Founder and operations director Sam Hagger said: “Our investment in The Rutland and Derby reinforces our strong commitment to this awesome pub and its team. Five years ago, it had been completely forgotten by the city but the guys here have worked with indefatigable energy to make it one of the best places to eat and drink in the city. Our investment into the pub’s kitchen has allowed us to enhance the pub’s food offer, meeting our guests demand for vibrant, fresh and constantly evolving food.” Ssoosh is currently seeking another pub to add to its ‘Beautiful Pubs’ collection, located within a ten mile radius of its current operations.

Tuesday 23/6/15

Cambridge News: Another Sushi chain will open to the public in Cambridge – just one month after Wasabi opened its doors in the city centre. The Sushi battle continues in the city centre with the announcement that Japanese chain Itsu is set to open in mid-July on Sidney Street – a few stores down from the Wasabi outlet which opened on Thursday. Itsu, which has Asian-inspired fast food shops and restaurants across the UK, will bring 24 new jobs to Cambridge with its outlet. The healthy eating store will open in the former Austin Reed shop on Sidney Street, next door to Jack Wills and Next, on July 17.

Read more: Click Here
Morningadvertiser.co.uk: Minister at opening of transformed community pub

By Oli Gross, 22-Jun-2015
A Nuneaton pub welcomed the community pubs minister to its opening on Thursday (18 June) following a £162,000 refurbishment.

http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Operators/Punch-Taverns/Minister-at-opening-of-transformed-community-pub

Bighospitality.co.uk: NTIA report: Regulation ‘unfairly harming’ late night venues

By Michelle Perrett, 23-Jun-2015
Bighospitality.co.uk: Late night venues are being unfairly harmed by regulation and reduced opening hours, a report by sociologist Professor Frank Furedi on behalf of the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) has revealed.

http://www.bighospitality.co.uk/Business/NTIA-report-Regulation-unfairly-harming-late-night-venues

Wednesday 24/6/15

The Caterer: Greene King completes £774m Spirit Pub Company acquisition: Greene King has completed the long awaited £774m acquisition of Spirit Pub Company, following months of negotiations. The business deal was first mooted in the press in September 2014, when Greene King confirmed that it was planning to make a bid for its rival. The acquisition, one of the sector’s most high profile deals, hit a stumbling block last month when the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ruled that it would “substantially” affect competition in the pub sector. The CMA stated on 11 May that there would be competition issues in 16 local markets, but conceded that it would not need to take its investigation into the potential acquisition to the next stage should the parties offer “acceptable undertakings” over those markets before the deadline of 18 May. Analysts had previously predicted that the groups would need to sell just 100 pubs to satisfy competition demands. Greene King said the deal will enable it to further realise its ambition to be an industry leader and grow its share of the UK eating and drinking out markets. The company has completed around 20 acquisitions since 1999 with a total value of more than £2b. Rooney Anand, chief executive officer of Greene King, commented: “Our focus now turns to building a combined business of our best brands, people, locations, and processes to ensure we succeed in the eating and drinking out markets for the long term. “As we begin this exciting new phase in our history, Greene King will continue to focus on creating a great place to work for our people, delivering industry-leading value, service and quality to our customers and maximising value for our shareholders.” Spirit chief executive officer Mike Tye added: “The combined business will be the largest managed pub company in the UK and a real force to be reckoned with, especially by taking the best of both businesses and creating a clear industry leader.” Spirit Pub Company has 770 managed pubs, including the Chef & Brewer, Taylor Walker and Fayre & Square brands, while Greene King has 1,000 managed pubs and around 900 tenanted and leased pubs.

Propelinfonews.com: Marston’s franchised pub becomes first in Hull to include interactive Bluetooth technology following £250,000 revamp: Marston’s franchised pub the Goodfellowship Inn in Hull has re-opened after a £250,000 refurbishment – and is the first pub in the city to include interactive Bluetooth technology for its customers. The pub in Cottingham Road, which is operated by Spectrums Leisure, features booths containing Bluetooth connections and television screens allowing customers to play their own music and films. Goodfellowship marketing director Tommy Stewart told the Hull Daily Mail: “We have built these interactive pods and family booths, which are very big, so we can get families of at least six or eight in them. It was an idea we saw in Canada and thought it was a really, really good thing to bring across to England. They can choose their own music and it is up to a level where others can’t hear it outside, but those inside the booth can hear it easily.” The pub also has a new food station that will serve a carvery in the day that turns into a burrito bar in the evening.

Freshbusinessthinking.com: 5 directors banned over illegal workers: Five directors of restaurants in Yeovil, Cardiff and Newport are the latest to be banned from running companies for knowingly employing illegal workers, following investigations into three restaurant businesses by the Insolvency Service. Abdul Boshor (43) and Samiur Rahman (24), who ran the Empire Restaurant (Cardiff) Ltd, signed undertakings banning them from acting as directors for seven and six years respectively. Abdul Kayum (46) and Rothna Begum (40), who ran the Akash Indian Restaurant in Yeovil, signed undertakings for six years. Mohammed Joynal Hye, who ran the Delhi Restaurant in Newport, has signed an undertaking not to be a director of a limited company for seven years. In the past year, a campaign led by the Insolvency Service, working with Home Office Immigration Enforcement, has seen 27 directors and two bankrupts across the country banned from running companies for a total of 194 years for employing illegal workers. Further cases are due to come before the courts in the coming months. Vicky Bagnall, Director of Investigation and Enforcement, at the Insolvency Service, said: “These cases show that by working together government agencies are cracking down on rogue companies and banning their directors for considerable periods of time. “Illegal working is not victimless — legitimate jobseekers have fewer opportunities to find work, honest competitors are undercut and tax to fund essential public services is not collected.”

Cambridge News: Midsummer House chef patron Daniel Clifford to appear on new series of Great British Menu: Acclaimed Cambridge chef Daniel Clifford is heading back to the scene of his double TV triumph – as a veteran judge on the Great British Menu. Daniel, chef patron of the city’s Michelin-starred restaurant Midsummer House, is a two-time winner of the programme. He won the main course section of the show in 2012, with his dish of slow-poached chicken, sweetcorn egg, spinach with bacon and peas – and he scooped the 2013 dessert title with his pineapple spectacular. In the new series of Great British Menu, in which chefs compete for the chance to cook a four-course banquet for a high-profile figure, Daniel will judge alongside some of the best UK chefs, including Sat Bains, Richard Corrigan, Phil Howard, Tom Kerridge, Marcus Wareing and Michael Smith.

Read more: Click Here

Thursday 25/6/15

Eastern Daily Press: Rules to curb new club and bars in Norwich’s clubbing district approved: New powers to limit the opening of new bars and clubs in the centre of Norwich’s clubbing district have been approved. Officers from Norfolk police spent months pulling together evidence of the problems of violence and anti-social behaviour in the heart of the city’s night-time economy. They said the opening of new bars last year led to more violence, with an extra six officers drafted in to police clubland on Saturday nights. Police called on City Hall to introduce a cumulative impact policy, which will make it much harder for new premises to get licences within a defined area, around Prince of Wales Road. The move, previously backed by the council’s licensing committee, was approved by a meeting of the full council last night. The policy will apply to premises asking for a licence, or a change to a current licence, for selling alcohol or late night refreshment between 9pm and 6am. A police report supporting the bid, said: “This would prevent any further licensed premises of a similar nature from opening in an area already saturated with pubs, clubs and late night refreshment premises, unless they can demonstrate they would not contribute to the issues and problems. The aim would be to reduce the risk of the potential increase in the number of violent alcohol-related offences. “It is understood that, while the night-time economy in those areas cannot be forcibly reduced, it can be more effectively contained and further growth more robustly scrutinised.” The council report said the policy “will be reviewed regularly to assess whether it is still needed or should be expanded”. City Hall now needs to publish a notice that it intends to revise its licensing rules, and the policy will come in a month later.

Friday 26/6/15

Propelinfonews.com: Shepherds Inn takes Peterborough site: Agent Savills has let the site of a former Indian restaurant in Peterborough city centre to restaurant operator Shepherds Inn, which plans a European-themed venue. The company has agreed to a new ten-year lease on the property at 10 Park Road, which includes dining, kitchen and ancillary space totalling 2,292 sq ft. Shepherds Inn will pay an annual rent of £25,000. Edward Gee, of Savills Peterborough, said: “Situated in the heart of Peterborough city centre, the property benefits from the good level of footfall on Park Road, making it an ideal location for the new Eastern European-themed restaurant. We are very pleased to have secured this letting to Shepherds Inn, achieving strong returns for our client.” Shepherds Inn was unrepresented. Savills completed the letting on behalf of Whitfield Group.

Propelinfonews.com: The Restaurant Group to open two venues in Northampton next week: The Restaurant Group is opening a branch of its Chiquito Tex-Mex chain in Northampton on Friday, 3 July. The company is opening the venue on the site of the former Red Hot Buffet in Sixfields. The Red Hot Buffet was destroyed by fire in December 2013 and the chain’s owners decided against rebuilding the site. The Restaurant Group is also opening a Coast 2 Coast restaurant on the same site, near to Cineworld. Both restaurants, which are creating a total of about 60 jobs, will be open between 9am and 11pm and include an outdoor terrace area.
Propelinfonews.com: Turtle Bay set to add to Midlands estate with Derby opening next month: Caribbean restaurant chain Turtle Bay will extend its Midlands footprint with an opening, creating 60 jobs, in Derby next month. Turtle Bay announced its move to Derby’s cathedral quarter in May and will open at the Wardwick at the end of July in a former Job Centre building. Turtle Bay has invested £800,000 in the refurbishment of the 4,000 sq ft site. Turtle Bay also has sites in Nottingham and Leicester. The company will host a recruitment day for chefs, cocktail bartenders, restaurant hosts and waiting staff later on Tuesday (30 June) at the Hallmark Hotel. Founder, Ajith Jaya-Wickrema, said: “The Caribbean ethos is founded upon the friendliness of its people which is why it’s so important we find staff who embody this and can make our customers feel comfortable and relaxed.”