Friday five: the week’s top hospitality stories

Gordon Ramsay at Hell's Kitchen
Gordon Ramsay at Hell's Kitchen (©Gordon Ramsay Restaurants)

Gordon Ramsay Restaurants’ financial results and the continued expansion of Honest Burgers are among this week’s most-read stories.

- Gordon Ramsay Restaurants has reported record revenues following the merging of its UK and international operations and the opening of 20 new restaurants in its most recent financial year. the group saw sales rise 40% to £134m in the 70 weeks ended December 2024. The extended reporting period allows the group’s UK business to be brought in line with its international counterpart following the reorganisation. The business made an operating loss before deductibles of £7.3m over the 70-week period, which was in part owing to the preparation costs for its new restaurants at 22 Bishopsgate, as well as the costs of closing some sites.

- Hawksmoor is eyeing further expansion in both the UK and the US with several sites currently under consideration for opening in 2026 and beyond. The steakhouse group, which operates 10 sites in the UK, seven of which are in London, as well US restaurants in New York and Chicago and a single site in Dublin, Ireland, has reported turnover of £100.4m for the year ended 31 December 2024.

- Honest Burgers is set to acquire 12 restaurants from rival Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK). The acquisitions will take the 39-strong Honest Burgers estate past the 50-site mark and will roughly halve GBK’s size, leaving it with around a dozen restaurants.

- Chef Billy Stock will open a pub and dining room with his partner, Ellie Topham, later this year. Located on Duke Street in Margate’s Old Town, The Wellington will feature a pub area at the front serving drinks and bar snacks, and a dining room at the rear offering seasonal British pub food.

- Los Angeles-based Michelin-starred restaurant Pasta Bar is coming to London for a two-week pop-up. The acclaimed restaurant, which is known for its omakase-style pasta tasting experience, will pitch up at Pizza East in Shoreditch from 6 October.