Qsr

Bunsik takes Chinatown site for next London opening

26-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

Korean QSR brand Bunsik has taken a site on Wardour Street in London’s Chinatown for its next opening in the capital.

Pasta Evangelists begins franchise rollout with two London sites

25-Jul-2024 By Restaurant

Pasta Evangelists is opening two Pasta Emporiums under franchise in London as part of its plans roll out a further 20 sites over the next five years.

Tortilla sees half-year revenue fall as a result of new delivery strategy

24-Jul-2024 By Restaurant

Tortilla has reported a fall in revenue for the first half of the year, amid several new strategic initiatives at the business.

Insomnia Cookies ‘poised to accelerate growth’ after Krispy Kreme sells majority stake

23-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

Insomnia Cookies says it is ‘poised to accelerate growth’ after Krispy Kreme sold its majority stake in the business to Verlinvest and Mistral Equity Partners.

Latest opening: Sandwich Sandwich London

19-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

The Bristol-based operator has arrived in London to deliver hench sarnies and an abundance of savoury pastries and sweet treats. Just be prepared for a long queue.

Pret scraps its five-a-day coffee subscription

18-Jul-2024 By Restaurant

Pret A Manger is scrapping its five-coffees-a-day Club Pret subscription offer in favour of a more traditional discount model.

Lowdown

Someone has photographed McDonald’s food in 50 countries and the results are surprising

12-Jul-2024 By Stefan Chomka

If you’ve ever felt other countries are getting a better deal at the Golden Arches, then McAtlas is the book for you.

How I Got Here: Oliver Zon

10-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

The founder and general manager of Italy-born QSR brand Kebhouze, which operates a three-storey site on London's Oxford Street, on not being blinded by ambition and how to stay motivated.

Wingers opens five new sites as expansion continues

05-Jul-2024 By Restaurant

Chicken wing brand Wingers has opened five new franchised store openings this year as part of its plans to have 20 stores by the end of 2024 and 50 by 2028.

Boojum heads to Nottingham for second England site

02-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

Ireland-based Mexican restaurant brand Boojum will open its second UK mainland restaurant this autumn in Nottingham.

Karali Group becomes the UK’s largest Taco Bell operator

02-Jul-2024 By James McAllister

The Karali Group has become the UK’s largest Taco Bell operator after acquiring 46 restaurants under the brand from a single franchisee.

Friday five: the week's biggest hospitality stories

28-Jun-2024 By Restaurant

Island Poke going into administration, Tortilla's push into France, and a new brand announcement from Bone Daddies were among this week's most-read stories.

Wingstop named fastest growing UK restaurant group

28-Jun-2024 By Restaurant

Wingstop UK has been named as the fastest growing restaurant group in the UK by The Sunday Times 100 for the second year in a row.

White Rabbit acquires full control of Island Poké

27-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Hospitality incubator White Rabbit Fund has acquired full control of Island Poké by way of a pre-pack administration.

It’s Bagels heads to Notting Hill

26-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

New York-style bagel concept It’s Bagels will open a second London site in August following the success of its location in Primrose Hill.

Donutelier to double London estate with Carnaby Street opening

26-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Israeli bakery and café group Roladin is to open a second London store under its boutique bakery brand Donutelier later this year having secured a site on Carnaby Street.

Tortilla rolls into France with acquisition of Fresh Burritos

25-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Tortilla has acquired France’s largest fast-casual Mexican restaurant group, providing a platform to accelerate its ambitions to franchise across Europe.

El Mexicana seeks new investment

24-Jun-2024 By Restaurant

The owners of Mexican fast-food chain El Mexicana and dessert brand Don Churro are seeking an investment partner to support its expansion.

Popeyes UK reaches 50 site milestone

21-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Fast-growing fried chicken brand Popeyes will open its 50th UK site next month in Glasgow.

Plans approved to tighten restrictions on opening new hot food takeaways in Newcastle

19-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

The opening of new hot food takeaways will be banned across most of Newcastle in a bid to combat rising obesity levels in the city.

'Do you want bacon with your ice cream?' McDonald’s ends AI drive-thru trial in US after order mistakes

19-Jun-2024 By Restaurant

McDonald’s in the US is ending its AI drive-thru trial after of errors with customer orders, including bacon being added to ice cream, have gone viral.

Sides expands omnichannel presence with new Iceland range

18-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Sides, the QSR fried chicken brand created by YouTube stars The Sidemen, is expanding its omnichannel presence with the launch of a new retail range in Iceland.

Burger & Sauce plots further expansion as it announces first Liverpool site

14-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Midlands-based fast food chain Burger & Sauce is looking to reach 20 sites nationwide by the end of the year.

Crosstown sold for just £500,000 after racking up £3m in losses

13-Jun-2024 By Finn Scott-Delany

Crosstown Doughnuts made losses of more than £3m over the last two years, before it was sold for just £500,000 in a pre-pack administration to the Karali Group.

Fireaway launches new Express format

06-Jun-2024 By Shwetali Sapte

Pizza takeaway brand Fireaway has launched an Express outlet in partnership with forecourt operator Highway Stops Retail.

Crosstown acquired by Karali Group

05-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Crosstown Doughnuts has secured new investment following a sale of its business and assets to Karali Snacks, a subsidiary of former Burger King franchisee the Karali Group.

‘Volatile economic environment’ leads Kokoro to reassess expansion plans

05-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Grab-and-go sushi and bento brand Kokoro is to ‘transition from pursuing aggressive growth’ following a dip in profits.

Pret abandons plans to open is Israel

04-Jun-2024 By James McAllister

Pret A Manger has abandoned plans to expand into Israel after terminating its franchise agreement with multi-national retailer Fox Group and global foodservice business Yarzin Sella Group.

Popeyes adopts AI technology for its drive-thrus

04-Jun-2024 By Restaurant

Popeyes says it is the first quick service restaurant in the UK to use AI for drive-thru ordering following a successful pilot.

Island Poké set for CVA as it calls in restructuring experts

24-May-2024 By James McAllister

Island Poké is set to restructure its business via a company voluntary arrangement (CVA).

Carl's Jr. to enter UK market after signing agreement with Boparan

23-May-2024 By James McAllister

Californian burger brand Carl’s Jr. is coming to the UK after signing a new master license agreement with Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG).

EL&N to launch deli and bakery concept in Covent Garden

20-May-2024 By Restaurant

Instagram-friendly cafe group EL&N is bringing a new concept to London this summer.

I am Döner secures first site in Canada

10-May-2024 By James McAllister

I am Döner has secured its first site in Canada as it continues to push ahead with plans to expand internationally.

Morley’s moves into retail with Heinz collab fried chicken sauce

30-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

Cult London fried chicken brand Morley’s has moved into the omnichannel retail space by launching its collaboration Heinz x Morley’s Fried Chicken Sauce into supermarkets.

Popeyes sees annual sales pass £100m

29-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

Annual sales at Popeyes UK have passed £100m, according to CEO Tom Crowley, as the group’s estate nears 50 sites.

Tortilla looks to accelerate growth through franchising as revenue continues to climb

24-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

Tortilla is aiming to accelerate its expansion by ‘doubling down on franchising’ as it looks to capitalise on UK and international growth opportunities.

The Lowdown: McDonald’s ‘Best Burger’ campaign

19-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

The Golden Arches is marking its 50th year in the UK by making major changes to the preparation of its core beef burger range.

Pret refunds app subscribers following technical issues

15-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

Pret A Manger has been forced to refund some users of its Club Pret subscription service after technical issues meant they were unable to access its app.

McDonald's to buy back Israel franchise following boycotts

05-Apr-2024 By James McAllister

McDonald’s is to buy its 30-year-old Israel franchise from its franchisee in the country Alonyal.

Papa John’s confirms closure of 43 ‘underperforming’ sites

26-Mar-2024 By James McAllister

Papa John’s has confirmed it will close 43 ‘underperforming’ sites from across its UK estate after launching a review of the business at the start of the year.

Little Caesars Pizza makes London debut

21-Mar-2024 By James McAllister

US pizza brand Little Caesars has opened its first London outpost in Greenford.

Knoops plots international expansion

19-Mar-2024 By Restaurant

Artisanal hot chocolate café concept Knoops has agreed its first international partnership to open sites in the Middle East, with expansion into the US and China also being discussed.

Crussh tees up new openings as it returns to expansion trail

18-Mar-2024 By James McAllister

Crussh, the London-based food to go chain, is returning to the expansion trail with new openings in Kensington and Fulham.

McDonald’s hit by ‘technology outage’

15-Mar-2024 By James McAllister

McDonald’s has confirmed that a ‘technology outage’ that impacted its UK restaurants has been resolved.

Deliveroo reports strong progress in latest results

14-Mar-2024 By Restaurant

Deliveroo says that it has had a ‘resilient year of growth’ as it reports a rise in gross profits.

Food to go market expected to outpace pre-pandemic value this year

04-Mar-2024 By Hannah Currie

The UK food to go market is expected to grow 3.5% to a value £23bn in 2024, outpacing its pre-pandemic value by 9.3%.

Luke Johnson takes a stake in Tortilla

28-Feb-2024 By Finn Scott-Delany

Hospitality entrepreneur Luke Johnson has taken a 3.6% stake in Tortilla Mexican Grill.

Friday five: the week's most-read hospitality stories

23-Feb-2024 By Restaurant

New openings from Santiago Lastra and MJMK, Creative Restaurant Group, and Permanently Unique Group were among this week's most-read stories.

Andy Naylor named as new Tortilla CEO

22-Feb-2024 By Restaurant

Tortilla CEO Richard Morris is to step down from his role at the end of next month after a decade with the company.

Pret slices prices of its best-selling sandwiches

19-Feb-2024 By Restaurant

Pret A Manger has cut the prices of its six best-selling items following high profile prise increases it introduced last year.