Britain’s top chefs and hoteliers demand representation in Parliament
After a terrible year in hospitality, the likes of Tom Kerridge, Angela Hartnett and Robin Hutson are calling for a Minister for Hospitality
11 January 2021 • 1:13pm
Robin Hutson, owner of The Pig hotels, is one of the founders of the Seat At The Table campaign
Remember the sight of that three-household turkey thawing pitifully on the draining board? Followed a few days later by the stench of those mouldy unused sprouts? Christmas was on. Christmas was off. Food wasted, tears shed, hopes of a yuletide respite dashed.
Recall the grief and upheaval in your own house, and then spare a thought for an industry already on the brink of collapse. “It feels like hospitality has been an afterthought throughout the pandemic,” says Sebby Holmes, head chef of Farang – a Michelin Bib Gourmand-awarded Thai restaurant in North London.
Trouble brewing for Caffe Nero as landlords fight back
Deal to save troubled coffee chain is under threat from a legal challenge as the Issa brothers stir the pot for a takeover
10 January 2021 • 11:59am
At around 9pm on a Sunday late last November, lawyers for the ailing coffee shop chain Caffe Nero received a letter.
Just hours before landlords were set to vote on a rescue deal that would enable Caffe Nero to renegotiate rental costs as it battles headwinds from the coronavirus pandemic, two billionaire brothers from Blackburn put forward an alternative proposal.
In an eleventh-hour intervention, EG Group, the petrol forecourt operator owned by Mohsin and Zuber Issa, expressed an interest in taking control of Caffe Nero and its 650 sites, seizing ownership from its founder and controlling shareholder Gerry Ford, while offering to pay landlords in full for the rent arrears owed to them due to the crisis.