Fat Hippo heads to Soho as it plots further expansion

02-Mar-2023 - Last updated on 02-Mar-2023 at 10:41 GMT

Northern-based burger brand Fat Hippo will open its second London restaurant this summer, on Wardour Street in Soho.

It is one of six openings planned by the group this year, as revealed by Fat Hippo’s head of marketing, Nick Fountain, while speaking at BigHospitality’s latest Generation Next event, which took place yesterday (1 March) in Birmingham.

An opening in Edinburgh is also scheduled, with Fountain saying the group hoped to launch both sites in quick succession.

Founded by Michael Phillips back in 2010, Fat Hippo opened its first restaurant in Newcastle Upon Tyne. It has since expanded across the UK with the bulk of its growth concentrated in the North of England and Midlands.

Fat Hippo currently operates an estate of 11 restaurants and five concession kiosks.

The group made its debut in the capital last autumn, opening on Great Eastern Street in Shoreditch.

At the time, Phillips told MCA, BigHospitality’s sister site, that the group is looking to expand at the rate of up to six sites per year, with a focus on vibrant city centres and maintaining a competitive price point while offering a premium product.

Fat Hippo serves an eclectic range of burgers that includes the eponymous Fat Hippo burger, which features a double patty, American cheese, smoked bacon, chorizo, onion rings and 'Fat Hippo sauce'; and the Great White Buffalo burger with buttermilk chicken, American cheese, smoked bacon, buffalo hot sauce and purple ‘slaw.

All burgers are served in toasted demi brioche and are served with 'Hippo-dusted' hand cut fries as standard.