News in brief
Galvin at Windows Bar reopens following £500k revamp
22-May-2012 - Galvin at Windows Bar has this week reopened on the 28th floor of The London Hilton Park Lane following an extensive £500,000 refurbishment.
North West bar chain Baa Bar to open three more sites in 2012
22-May-2012 - Baa Bar, the North West bar chain which has just opened its 10th venue, has announced it is planning to expand the brand and open more sites in three new cities in 2012.
Maxxium UK launches Bols Natural Yoghurt Liqueur
22-May-2012 - Maxxium UK, the global drinks giant behind Highland Park, Jim Beam and Courvoisier, has launched the first ever natural yoghurt liqueur to the UK market, developed by cocktail liqueur and spirits producer Lucas Bols.
Diamond Jubilee boost to hospitality businesses but hotels face a challenge
21-May-2012 - The upcoming Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations may provide a boost to hospitality businesses of a similar scale to the one enjoyed during the Royal Wedding last year but hotels may face a challenge to fill rooms, according to Priceaterhouse Coopers (PwC).
News in brief
Pubs and bars becoming safer workplaces
21-May-2012 - Pubs and bars are becoming much safer places to work with the number of workplace accidents continuing to decline according to the latest findings from the environmental health consultancy Perry Scott Nash.
Smeg Foodservice Solutions launches commercial warewashing range in UK
21-May-2012 - Experienced commercial appliance manufacture Smeg Food Service solutions has launched its range of warewashers in the UK adding to its trade portfolio of products that includes cooking equipment.
Boris Johnson gets behind new BII Apprenticeship scheme
21-May-2012 - London’s re-elected Mayor Boris Johnson is challenging the licensed hospitality sector to get 5,000 apprentices working in the pub industry within the next 12 months, as part of a joint initiative with the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII).
ASK THE EXPERTS
How hotels can comply with fire safety laws
21-May-2012 - Geoff Wilkinson, a building inspector, fire engineer and managing director of Wilkinson Construction Consultants, explains what hotels and other hospitality businesses need to do to stay within fire safey laws following recent prosecutions.
Martin Grant replaced by Bernard Brindley as BII chairman
18-May-2012 - Martin Grant has stepped down as chairman of the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) after 10 years of service and is to be replaced by long-standing BII Council member Bernard Brindley.
IDEAS FROM YOUR PEERS
The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Special: What's your business doing?
18-May-2012 - To celebrate The Queen's Diamond Jubilee next month, BigHospitality has spoken to restaurants, hotels, pubs and bars from across the UK to find out about the Jubilee-themed special offers and promotions they're running to capitalise on the increased footfall.
Mitchells and Butlers sales rise but profit dips as brand rollout continues
18-May-2012 - Mitchells & Butlers (M&B), which operates the Harvester and All Bar One brands, has reported positive sales growth in its half year results driven by food although profit for the business has dipped and poor weather has hit recent sales.
Lucy Haines: Career Profile
18-May-2012 - Lucy Haines joined London wine tasting venue Vinopolis as managing director earlier this year, following senior commercial roles at Compass, Mint Hotels and TUI Travel. Haines is now responsible for all Vinopolis enterprises, including the restaurants, retail outlets, event spaces and the wine tour, which is currently undergoing a major refurbishment.
Classic Cuisine launches Jubilee-inspired fish, chip and pea pie
18-May-2012 - Foodservice ready meal supplier Classic Cuisine has launched a fish, chip and pea pie 'inspired by everything British', available to restaurants, pubs and bars in time for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
News in brief
Smoking Ban: Pub and bar survey launched five years on
17-May-2012 - Nearly five years since the introduction of the smoking ban in England which outlawed smoking in enclosed public places, including pubs and bars, BigHospitality's sister publication The Publican's Morning Advertiser has launched a survey to analyse the impact on the sector.
Cold and wet April hits pub and restaurant sales
17-May-2012 - April proved to be a washout for the eating and drinking-out market as unusually cold and wet weather hit like-for-like sales, according to this month’s Coffer Peach Business Tracker.
Food and family focus drives pub sales up for Marston's
17-May-2012 - Marston's has reported strong half year sales with an increased focus on food, families and female customers helping to drive pre-tax profits up by nearly 15 per cent.
Glass crusher to be rolled out to more pubs, restaurants and hotels following trial success
17-May-2012 - An engineering firm has partnered with recycling company Ekko to roll-out a glass crusher to more pubs, restaurants and hotels following a successful trial in 100 companies, including pub-restaurant chain Mitchells & Butlers.
The Coach and Horses & The Smithfield Tavern become London's first vegetarian pubs
16-May-2012 - The Coach and Horses in Soho and The Smithfield Tavern in Smithfields market have become London’s first ever vegetarian and vegan pubs, following a successful trial period of the new concept from the owner.
News in brief
King's Cross restaurants and bars help new concourse post record sales figures
16-May-2012 - Network Rail has revealed it expects to post record retail figures from its newly-launched Western concourse at King's Cross station driven in part by the restaurants and bars on site including Leon and the Fuller's pub The Parcel Yard.
Hall & Woodhouse grows pub estate with four acquisitions
16-May-2012 - Dorset-based brewer and pub operator Hall & Woodhouse has revealed it has acquired four new sites to add to its pub portfolio including two new builds and an established operation in Bristol.
News in brief
England's Best Burger: Lancashire pub reaches final two
15-May-2012 - A burger served up in The Fence Gate Inn near Burnley, Lancashire, has reached the final two in an EBLEX competition to find England's Best Burger.
National Chef of the Year 2012 semi-finalists announced
15-May-2012 - The 40 chefs who have made it to the semi-finals of the 2012 National Chef of the Year (NCOTY) competition have been revealed by the Craft Guild of Chefs.
Enterprise Inns slows pub disposal as profits drop
15-May-2012 - Enterprise Inns has reported a drop in profits but revealed it was slowing its pub disposal programme and was looking to refinance after cutting its levels of debt.
Kraft Foods makes ‘wholebean instant’ coffee Kenco Millicano available to the trade
15-May-2012 - Kraft Foods has launched its ‘wholebean instant’ coffee Kenco Millicano into the out-of-home sector following the product's success in retail.
Kona Kai: Tiki-inspired cocktail bar opens in Chelsea
14-May-2012 - The owners of The Sugar Cane cocktail bar in London’s Clapham Junction have officially launched Kona Kai – a Polynesian-style destination bar located on the Fulham/Chelsea border.