- Ottolenghi co-founder Noam Bar-Chang and founder of Kung Fu Mama Retail Chris Hsu are to open a Taiwanese noodle bar. The pair will open Kung Fu Mama on Long Acre in Covent Garden next month serving a contemporary take on authentic Taiwanese flavours using Kung Fu Mama Retail’s dried noodles. The bijou site will have space for just nine covers inside and four outside and will serve a concise menu of healthy noodle dishes with ingredients that are oven-baked rather than fried, seed oil swapped out for extra-virgin olive oil, and salt, sugar and fat levels kept to a minimum.
- Restaurant brands Pho, Rosa’s Thai, and Mowgli Street Food are to come closer together to create the UK’s largest multisite casual dining operator in the Asian restaurant category. TriSpan, the investment company behind the three brands, has announced plans to bring the brands together under new holding group Arcturus Group, as part of its Rising Stars fund, which invests in emerging restaurant brands that are poised for significant growth.
- Adam Handling has opened a chocolate shop round the corner from his The Frog restaurant in London’s Covent Garden this week. The chef and restaurateur launched the Adam Handling Chocolate Shop on Maiden Lane this week. Cocoa beans from countries including India, Peru and Madagascar will be used to make the chocolate, which will be produced in store. The shop will also work with producers such as XOCO Gourmet, the world’s first chocolate producer to develop and cultivate its own single variety cacao.
- Hospitality trade bodies have described Rachel Reeve’s Spring Statement as a ‘missed opportunity’ to address the challenges being faced by the restaurant and pub sectors, and say they are losing confidence in the Chancellor. UKHospitality says that the Government’s failure to address changing employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) will stifle employment in critical sectors like hospitality.
- Chef Robbie Jameson is to take the reins at Michelin-starred Mayfair restaurant HUMO following the recent departure of Miller Prada. Jameson, who has been part of the HUMO team since its launch in 2023, will continue the restaurant’s dedication to wood-fired cooking having played a key role in menu development since opening.