TGI Friday’s opens at the Brewery shopping centre in Romford on Monday (16 July). MOD Pizza is also just about to launch a restaurant there—the seventh for the brand.
New World Trading Company has secured approval for plans to open a branch of its restaurant and cocktail bar brand The Botanist in the Octagon Hall on Milsom Place in Bath.
US burger and milkshake brand Shake Shack has opened its ninth UK location—on Cannon Street in the City. It now has eight restaurants in London plus another in Cardiff, and is seeking to add more sites in the next few years.
Zizzi and Bistrot Pierre have both been confirmed for openings at the Cathedral Lanes restaurant development in Coventry in September. They have taken 3,500 and 5,300 square feet units respectively. Turtle Bay is following to Cathedral Lanes in 2019.
American-style restaurant and bar concept Hancock’s is to open three new sites in the south-east to go alongside its original location in Chatham in Kent. It has secured sites in Camberley, Maidstone and Eastley, with sizes between 3,000 and 4,000 square feet. The Camberley restaurant will open in August, with the other two following in September. Director David Chick said: “Hancock’s in Chatham was originally conceived as a standalone restaurant… but the past 12 months have shown that this is a winning concept, enjoyed by practically every demographic group, so embarking on a managed and manageable expansion programme is the logical next step.”
US burger brand In-N-Out ran a one-day pop-up restaurant on Highgate Road in London on Tuesday (10 July). It has run brief pop-ups in London before, suggesting it has plans to open permanent sites in the UK in due course.
Leon has announced plans to open its first restaurant in Ireland. It is partnering on a franchise with Cibus Concepts, which plans to open 20 sites across Irish cities by 2023. The first restaurant will launch in Dublin later this year. Cibus is run by Brian McIntyre and Stuart Fitzgerald, who said: “The Leon offering is completely different from anything available in Ireland and Irish people are going to love it. In Ireland we’re famous for enjoying a bit of fun and having the craic, but even the Irish haven’t yet managed to make fast food fun. Pretty soon people in Ireland are going to be able to enjoy healthy, fresh and flavourful fast food in an environment where the focus is on excellent food, speed of service, a big warm welcome… and fun.”
Five Guys is to open on St Peter’s Street in Canterbury. Local media report that it has started recruiting for the opening.
American deep south-style concept Absurd Bird opened this week on Nelson Mandela Place in Glasgow. It joins branches of the brand in London, Bath, Exeter and Leeds.
Côte is opening a 3,400 square feet restaurant at the Festival Place shopping centre in Basingstoke. It will be next to the ten-screen cinema there.
Healthy food and juice operator Crussh has opened two new sites in association with the Everyone Active leisure centre group—in Kendal Rise in London and in St Albans. Crussh now has 33 locations in all, and the St Albans venture is its first outside London.
Indian street food-style restaurant and craft beer bar Bundobust has been granted permission to open on Bold Street in Liverpool. Bundobust started out in Leeds and now also has a location in Manchester.
Revolution Bars Group is opening a third location in Glasgow after acquiring the site previously occupied by Tunnel nightclub on Mitchell Street. It will be converted into a Revolution bar, to go with a Revolution and Revolucion de Cuba elsewhere in Glasgow.
Marston’s will open a new-build pub and restaurant called the Sun Verge in Rhyl in September, local media report.
Baked In Brick, a Birmingham pizza and barbecue street food concept that has won several awards has launched a permanent 60-cover restaurant at the Custard Factory in Digbeth.
Jimmy’s Killer Prawns, a South Africa-based seafood restaurant group, has just opened its first UK site on London Road in Leicester.
