Articles by Date : March 01 2007 - March 31 2007

First-time buyers for Dorset fine-dining restaurant
The Wayfarers fine-dining restaurant in Sherborne Causeway, North Dorset, has been acquired by first-time buyers David and Sue Lamb from Timsbury in.... more
(07 March 2007 16:55)

Spanish hotel owner buys property in Chepstow
Spanish-hotel owner Steve McGlone has snapped up an historic Grade II-listed hotel opposite Chepstow Castle. more
(07 March 2007 16:53)

Somerset freehouse is sold
The Old Custom House, an historic Grade II-listed period freehouse on the Somerset Levels, has changed hands. more
(07 March 2007 16:51)

Dumfries village hotel changes hands
The two-star Craigdarroch Arms hotel in the heart of the Dumfries village of Moniaive has been sold to Gary Henry. more
(07 March 2007 16:49)

Golfer buys lease on Nottingham style bar
A golfing professional has bought the lease on the Brass Monkey style bar in the heart of Nottingham. more
(07 March 2007 16:47)

National Skills Strategy initiative launched today
The National Skills Strategy for the tourism and hospitality sector in England was launched in London today. more
(07 March 2007 16:10)

National minimum wage set to increase in October
The national minimum wage is to rise from £5.35 to £5.52 an hour in October, the Department of Trade and Industry announced today. more
(07 March 2007 15:03)

Restored Cumbrian hotel for lease
The opportunity to lease a restored listed hotel in an affluent part of Cumbria has come to the market. more
(07 March 2007 14:14)

Awarding-winning Cotswold tea shop/restaurant for sale
An award-winning tea shop/restaurant in the centre of the busy Cotswold village of Minchinhampton, near Stroud, is for sale. more
(07 March 2007 14:09)

Berkshire pub-restaurant with rooms on the market
New owners are being sought for a Berkshire pub with a restaurant and three en-suite bedrooms. more
(07 March 2007 14:07)

UK hotel sector remains set for good years ahead
The UK hotel sector is set for two more good years ahead with room rates in luxury London hotels approaching £360 a night by 2008, according to new.... more
(07 March 2007 13:30)

Review of the reviews... what the critics say about Hat and Feathers and others
What the restaurant critics think of the food in eateries around the UK and the world... more
(07 March 2007 13:00)

Arbutus owners close to completing second site deal
The owners of the award-winning restaurant Arbutus in London’s Frith Street are close to completing on a second site. more
(07 March 2007 12:30)

Tiger Tiger owner launches marketing website
Tiger Tiger owner Novus Leisure, formerly Urbium, has launched a new website to provide marketing and sales support for its eight city-based venues. more
(07 March 2007 12:00)

Hilton launches 10-year plan to open 1,000 European hotels
Hilton Hotels Corporation will launch 1,000 new hotels in Europe over the next decade, the company revealed today. more
(07 March 2007 11:30)

Hotelympia to open with 10k run
The opening for next year’s Hotelympia conference will again be a 10k race starting and finishing at ExCel London, organiser Fresh RM and charity.... more
(07 March 2007 11:00)

Companies can’t afford to relax in boom times if they are to succeed
Companies need stay on top of their game by constantly reinventing their definition of what excellence is, according to a leading hospitality expert. more
(07 March 2007 10:45)

Starwood to build first Aloft hotel in Brussels
Starwood Hotels and Resorts’s first Aloft hotel in Europe will be built in Brussels. more
(07 March 2007 10:20)

The Restaurant Group makes 'buoyant' start to the year
Frankie & Benny’s and Chiquito owner The Restaurant Group has made a “buoyant” start to year, with like-for-like sales for the first nine weeks.... more
(07 March 2007 09:48)

Mandarin Oriental Prague named new development of the year
The Mandarin Oriental in Prague, formerly a 14th century monastery, was named the new development of the year at the International Hotel Investment.... more
(07 March 2007 08:30)

British Hospitality Association boss questions skills plan
The chief executive of the British Hospitality Association (BHA) has questioned the value of change for change’s sake when it comes to tackling the.... more
(06 March 2007 17:33)

Harvey Nichols chef joins D&D London restaurant group
Helena Poulakka, executive chef at the Fifth Floor Restaurant at London’s Harvey Nichols store in Knightsbridge, is to join restaurant group D&D.... more
(06 March 2007 17:00)

Peter Lederer re-elected as VisitScotland chairman
Peter Lederer has been re-elected as chairman of VisitScotland for a further three years. more
(06 March 2007 16:30)

Mandarin Oriental International profits down due to closure of flagship Hong Kong hotel
Mandarin Oriental International has reported a 6% drop in underlying profitability for 2006 due to the nine-month closure of its flagship property in.... more
(06 March 2007 14:33)

World economy to avoid full-blown global recession
Leading economist Roger Bootle doesn’t expect the current troubles in the world economy to lead to a full blown global and US recession. more
(06 March 2007 11:59)

Whitbread completes sale of TGI Friday’s
Whitbread has completed the sale of TGI Friday’s, transforming the company into one predominantly focused on budget hotels and coffee shops. more
(06 March 2007 11:15)

RoadChef sold to Delek Real Estate
RoadChef, Britain’s third-largest motorway services chain, has been sold by its Japanese private equity owner in a deal valuing the group at £425m. more
(06 March 2007 10:34)

Michel Roux Jr extends contract with Restaurant Associates
Michel Roux Jr has extended his contract with Compass Group’s fine dining division Restaurant Associates for another year. more
(06 March 2007 10:00)

Rank Group completes sale of Hard Rock to Seminole Tribe
Rank Group has completed the controversial sale of its Hard Rock business to the Seminole Tribe of Florida. more
(06 March 2007 09:40)

Greene King launches campaign to get staff to quit smoking
Brewer and pub operator Greene King has launched a campaign to encourage its 16,000 workers to give up smoking in preparation for the 1 July ban in.... more
(06 March 2007 09:00)

Maypole buys fourth countryside hotel for £1.95m
Countryside hotel operator the Maypole Group has bought its fourth property, the Wayford Bridge hotel in Norfolk, for £1.95m. more
(06 March 2007 08:30)

Kingston upon Hull's free school meals service avoids the axe
Kingston upon Hull’s groundbreaking free-school meals service has won an eleventh hour reprieve, avoiding the axe for now. more
(05 March 2007 15:09)

Antony Worrall Thompson distances himself from pub which food hygiene inpectors rate zero
Celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson has distanced himself from the country pub which was in the newspapers after it was rated "zero" by food.... more
(05 March 2007 14:22)

Online shopping facility unveiled by Travelodge
Travelodge customers can now pre-order goods and services online in advance of their stay thanks to a £1m investment in the company’s website. more
(05 March 2007 13:00)

Legoland and Madame Tussauds owners to merge in deal worth £1b
The owners of Legoland and Madame Tussauds are to merge in a deal worth more than £1b, it was announced today. more
(05 March 2007 12:28)

Hospitality operators wanted for £1b Swansea city redevelopment
Councillors in Swansea have today called for restaurant, bar and pub operators to get involved in a planned £1b redevelopment of the city centre and.... more
(05 March 2007 11:45)

London hotels make strong start to year
Strong January sales suggest London hotels are on track for another record year, according to the latest HotStats figures from TRI Hospitality.... more
(05 March 2007 11:15)

Marriott Hotels International signs Hospitality Graduate Recruitment to promote graduate programme
Marriott Hotels International has signed up Hospitality Graduate Recruitment (HGR) to handle its 2007 graduate recruitment scheme for the UK &.... more
(05 March 2007 10:31)

Food service faces new challenges and opportunities
David Field, managing director, Nestlé FoodServices shares his thoughts on the changes predicted in the 2007 UK Food and Service Management Survey,.... more
(05 March 2007 10:20)

Accor sells hotels in Germany and Netherlands in £589m deal
Hotel group Accor is to sell 72 hotels in Germany and 19 in the Netherlands in a sale-and-leaseback deal worth €863m (£589m). more
(05 March 2007 09:59)

RoadChef MSAs sold for £425m - For more hospitality stories, see what the weekend papers say
A round-up of the weekend's news affecting the hospitality industry. News includes: JD Wetherspoon get £7m rise in utility charges; Struggling.... more
(05 March 2007 09:43)

Starwood to launch hotel in Syria and other international news
Essential news from around the world, including: Accor sells German assets; McDonald’s expands coffee range; Mandarin Oriental completes sale of New.... more
(05 March 2007 08:30)

Duchy Catering buys Hopkinson Catering
Duchy Catering has purchased Hopkinson Catering after the latter was placed into administration last week. more
(05 March 2007 08:00)

JD Wetherspoon not to become a REIT company
Pub operator JD Wetherspoon has confirmed it will not be one of the first companies in the sector to turn itself into a Real Estate Investment Trust.... more
(02 March 2007 17:01)

Friday Wrap: A round-up of the week's hospitality news
Happy with the new Gambling Act? Don’t bet on it. more
(02 March 2007 16:30)

Donald Trump to invest in hotel market in Montenegro
American billionaire Donald Trump intends to invest in the hotel business in the coastal area of Montenegro. more
(02 March 2007 15:45)

Hilton Hotels Corporation agrees to sell Scandic Hotels for £565m
Hilton Hotels Corporation has agreed to sell its Scandic Hotel chain to private equity firm EQT for approximately €833m (£565m). more
(02 March 2007 15:08)

Education chief hits back at NVQ critics
The lead inspector at the Adult Learning Inspectorate has hit back at industry criticism of college lecturers and the NVQ qualification. more
(02 March 2007 14:31)

Texas Pacific Group sells remaining stake in Gate Gourmet
Private equity firm Texas Pacific Group has reportedly sold its remaining stake in airline caterer Gate Gourmet to investment bank Merrill Lynch. more
(02 March 2007 13:12)

InterContinental launches new payment card scheme
The InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has launched a new payment card scheme designed to provide business customers with a reliable and cost.... more
(02 March 2007 10:53)