The premium pasta brand, together with its franchise partners, will be investing over £30m in the new restaurants and is actively looking for sites and new partners across the South of England, Midlands, and in Scotland.
“The demand for our fresh, beautifully cooked artisan pasta is growing,” says Alessandro Savelli, who originally launched Pasta Evangelists back in 2016.
“Our intention is to become the UK’s fastest-growing, casual dining hot spot and the hottest place to eat for pasta lovers of all ages.
“We are actively looking for sites and franchise partners across the whole of the UK and welcome approaches.”
Pasta Evangelists started out life as a delivery-only concept and moved into the restaurant space in 2021 with a site in Harrods Dining Hall in London.
The brand was bought by the Barilla Group the same year and has subsequently added a further seven restaurants to its portfolio, most recently in Guildford and Farringdon.
A further three London sites are due to open in Fulham, Queensway and New Oxford Street in the coming weeks, bringing the group’s total restaurant count to 11.
“Sustainable growth has always been our plan,” continues Savelli.
“The hospitality industry is going through tough times at the moment, but we are confident that our business model is robust and dynamic and the proof of this is we have already bucked the trend with the confirmed opening of five more restaurants in the space of three months, and more to come.”
Savelli adds that the group’s plan for expansion is expected to create up to 1,500 new jobs and the company is looking into developing a ‘pasta apprenticeship’ scheme to attract new staff and help its current workforce develop.
Last month, Savelli also revealed that Pasta Evangelists is also exploring options for international expansion in the US, as well as France, the Middle East and China.
“The future is the USA,” he said at the time in an interview with Yahoo! Finance.
“It’s the biggest market for Italian food and pasta, number one for restaurants and is our priority for the future.
“For some reason, Italian cuisine does not have an owner in the restaurant space, and I think Pasta Evangelists will become this brand.”