The top 5 stories in hospitality this week 12/09 - 16/09
What were some of the top stories in hospitality this week? Here's our pick.
- Piquet, the restaurant set up by chef Allan Pickett and Bodean's founder Andre Blais, has gone in to administration one year after opening. It comes after Piquet received rave reviews and was named the UK's seventh best restaurant at this year's National Restaurant Awards.
- The gin bubble is showing no sign of bursting with sales of the spirit hitting £1bn for the first time this year. According to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) £149m of the drink has been sold in the last 12 weeks alone.
- UK hotels are being urged to contribute to an EU investigation in to the impact of rate parity agreements used by online travel agents (OTAs). It comes just over a year since Expedia and Booking.com agreed to change terms which prevented hotels offering cheaper rates through other OTAs, but the sites still prohibit users selling lower priced rooms on their own website.
- Drake's restaurant in Surrey has announced Fred Clapperton as its new head chef following the departure of former owner Steve Drake. A representative for the venue told BigHospitality that the 28-year-old chef was hoping to 'make his mark' on the menu, which has seen the restaurant hold a Michelin star for over ten years.
- Restaurants and hotels are lowering the price of main courses but boosting spending by offering more side dishes and small plates. According to a Horizons report the number of snack dishes on menus has risen 60 per cent year-on-year, while the average cost of a main course has fallen by two per cent to £10.71.
For a full run-down of this week's news click here.