Articles by Date : May 01 2007 - May 31 2007

Tea: Get the basics right
In recent years there has been huge growth in speciality blends to addinterest and variety to beverage menus, but choosing the right basic blendsthat.... more
(16 May 2007 13:30)

Getting more from your coffee menu
With basic barista training, drinks that take just a minute to make can look incredibly imaginative on coffee menus. Ian Boughton investigates more
(16 May 2007 13:26)

Radisson Edwardian set to open in London's Docklands
Radisson Edwardian Hotels is set to open a new hotel in London’s Docklands. more
(16 May 2007 13:00)

The Restaurant Group results ahead of expectations
Frankie & Benny’s and Chiquito owner The Restaurant Group has made an “encouraging” start to year with like-for-like sales for the first five months.... more
(16 May 2007 12:30)

Five US Marriott hotels sold
Five Marriott hotels in the USA have been bought for $114.2m (£57.6m) by Memphis-based Equity Inns the oldest and third largest hotel real estate.... more
(16 May 2007 12:00)

InterContinental adds two Indigo hotels in St. Louis and other international news
Essential news from around the world, including: South Africa introduces minimum wage for hospitality workers; Hyatt plans to reach 120 hotels by end.... more
(16 May 2007 11:30)

Amanda Scott takes job at Excelsior hotel in Hong Kong
Amanda Scott, the former general manager of London’s Waldorf hotel, has moved to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group as GM of the Excelsior hotel in.... more
(16 May 2007 10:51)

Dog hotel opens in San Francisco
A new hotel with a difference is to open in San Francisco that caters especially for dogs, not people. more
(16 May 2007 10:50)

Karaoke 'pods' to open in Manchester
Late night bar operator Novus Leisure is teaming up with Karaoke experts Lucky Voice to introduce new "pods" in Manchester. more
(16 May 2007 10:13)

Compass boss continues drive to refocus business
Compass Group has delivered a strong improvement in margins as chief executive Richard Cousins continues his work to refocus the giant on its core.... more
(16 May 2007 09:56)

The Bench: London weekly hotel performance to 13 May, 2007
London hotels saw revenue per available room (revpar) fall by 0.2% in the week ending 13 May, according to figures from hotel benchmarking service.... more
(16 May 2007 08:05)

The Bench: North-eastern hotel performance in February 2007
Hotel revenue per available room (revpar) dropped by 2.5% in the North East during the month of February. more
(16 May 2007 08:00)

London’s Savoy hotel designer revealed
After months of speculation, London’s Savoy hotel has confirmed it is to close in December for 16 months to undergo a £100m-plus refurbishment. more
(15 May 2007 16:30)

Private equity group unveils latest acquisition
Bahrain-based private equity group, Investcorp, has announced the acquisition of a portfolio of US hotels worth $450m (£228m). more
(15 May 2007 16:28)

Classic British Hotels adds to portfolio
Hotel marketing consortium, Classic British Hotels (CBH), has added four new properties to its collection, taking its total portfolio to nearly 60. more
(15 May 2007 16:00)

Pub operator JD Wetherspoon to push food provenance in its pubs
JD Wetherspoon is to give customers information on the provenance of its food, making available local sourcing and nutritional information to.... more
(15 May 2007 15:25)

Pubfolio close to being offered for sale
Pubfolio, the 545 strong pub estate run by Country Estate Management, is set to hire bankers Rothschild to market the business for approximately.... more
(15 May 2007 14:40)

Continent Hotels & Resorts plan Europe and Asia expansion
Turkish hotel group, Continent Hotels and Resorts has announced plans to expand throughout Europe, India and China. more
(15 May 2007 14:35)

Enterprise Inns mulls REIT as half-year turnover falls
Enterprise Inns continues to investigate a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and is holding informal discussions with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).... more
(15 May 2007 13:30)

Chef Conference: Prue Leith urges industry to nurture staff
Veteran restaurateur and chair of the School Food Trust, Prue Leith OBE, has urged the industry to do more to nurture their staff by providing better.... more
(15 May 2007 12:58)

Honeycombe secures future with reverse takeover
Embattled pub chain Honeycombe Leisure has secured its future through a reverse takeover by Liverpool brewer Robert Cain & Co. more
(15 May 2007 12:15)

Loch Fyne Restaurants reports highest ever turnover
Loch Fyne Restaurants has tipped the scales with its highest ever net turnover in the full year ended 31 December. more
(15 May 2007 10:23)

Carluccio’s to open in first airport site
Italian restaurant/café chain Carluccio’s has landed a new site at Heathrow Airport’s massive Terminal Five development in West London. more
(15 May 2007 09:55)

Monkfish no longer a fish to avoid
Environmental pressure group the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) has removed monkfish from northern stocks off its “fish to avoid” list after a.... more
(14 May 2007 14:59)

Honeycombe Leisure in talks with Liverpool brewer
North-West pub chain Honeycombe Leisure has confirmed it is in advance talks with privately-owned Liverpool brewer Robert Cain & Co. more
(14 May 2007 14:50)

Lindbald Expedition wins Global Tourism Business Award
Galapagos and Antarctic tour operator, Lindblad Expeditions, scooped the World Travel & Tourism Council’s Global Tourism Business Award last week. more
(14 May 2007 11:30)

St Regis to debut in Jakarta and other international hotel news
Essential news from around the world, including: Marriott to open 100 hotels in 100 days; Carlson bans trans fats; Golden Tulip to add hotels in.... more
(14 May 2007 11:00)

Alpha Airports to operate Starbucks stores at UK airports
Alpha Airports, the in-flight and airport retailer, has signed a licensing deal with Starbucks to open and run the coffee-bar giant’s stores at UK.... more
(14 May 2007 10:30)

Compass Group sells Selecta for more than £770m
Compass Group has sold its European vending machine business, Selecta, for more than £770m, the catering giant announced this weekend. more
(14 May 2007 10:30)

David Michels in conflict of interest concern - For more hospitality stories, see what the weekend papers say
A round-up of the weekend's news affecting the hospitality industry. News includes: Compass sell vending business for £772.5m; Hotels are a good.... more
(14 May 2007 09:55)

Arora International boss named Eastern Eye’s Entrepreneur of the Year
Arora International boss Surinder Arora has been named KPMG’s Entrepreneur of the Year at the 11th annual Eastern Eye Business Awards 2007. more
(14 May 2007 09:25)

Understanding hospitality graduate expectations is key
Jeff Ross, managing director of Hospitality Graduate Recruitment on understanding and managing the expectations of graduates more
(14 May 2007 08:00)

Half of England unaware of smoking ban date
Almost half the population (45%) in England do not know when the country’s smoking ban will come into force, according to a survey by the Department.... more
(12 May 2007 00:01)

Brits aboard accused of running illegal hotels in Bulgaria
Bulgarian authorities have claimed that Brits are buying up local homes and illegally turning them into hotels. more
(11 May 2007 16:23)

Friday Wrap: A round-up of the week's hospitality news
Let’s hope Piccadilly Licensed Properties didn’t have their beer goggles on as they’ve paid more than peanuts, £82.5m to be exact, for 279 pubs.... more
(11 May 2007 16:00)

Shepherd Neame smoking ban redevelopments cost £3m
Kent brewer and pub operator Shepherd Neame has said the redevelopment of its 380 strong pub estate in advance of 1 July’s England smoking ban has.... more
(11 May 2007 13:04)

Honeycombe Leisure shares suspended ahead of takeover announcement
Struggling pub chain Honeycombe Leisure has had it shares suspended from the Alternative Investment market (AIM) after speculation about a takeover.... more
(11 May 2007 12:50)

Diners want to see local food named on menus
London restaurants that don’t source produce locally and ethically risk being “left behind”, according to a report by sustainable food organisation.... more
(11 May 2007 11:28)

Elior to offer venue service at client sites
Contract caterer Elior UK will launch a new venue-finding service, Venue-Elior, later this month. more
(11 May 2007 10:54)

Scolarest signs £1.25m Merseyside schools deal
Compass Group owned Scolarest has signed a £1.25m, three-year contract to supply ten Merseyside Primary schools with more than 1,000 meals every.... more
(11 May 2007 10:45)

Chef Giancarlo Caldesi to move to Michelin-laden Bray
Giancarlo Caldesi, chef-proprietor of Café Caldesi restaurants and owner of La Cucina Caldesi cooking school, is to open a restaurant in the.... more
(11 May 2007 10:16)

Poor training blamed for low standards of hygiene
More than one in 10 hospitality operators give staff no cleaning or hygiene training, exclusive research by Caterer has revealed. more
(10 May 2007 18:00)

Marston’s sells package of pubs to Piccadilly Licensed Properties
Brewer and pub operator Marston’s has sold 279 tenanted pubs for £82.5m to Piccadilly Licensed Properties (PLP). more
(10 May 2007 17:30)

European Parliament to review Working Time Directive
The European Parliament has sent a delegation to Portugal to establish whether it plans to resurect the Working Time Directive (WTD) when it takes.... more
(10 May 2007 17:15)

European commissioner suspends funding to five RDAs
As the European Parliament prepares for the start of the Portuguese presidency in September, Emily Manson went to Brussels to find out what key.... more
(10 May 2007 16:37)

Britons eat out less as inflation hits spending
British consumers ate nearly 100 million fewer meals in pubs, hotels, cafés and restaurants last year than in 2005, as rising bills reduced.... more
(10 May 2007 14:15)

Coffee Republic signs Dorset franchise deal as finance director quits
Coffee Republic has reached an agreement with CR Dorset granting the retailer the exclusive development franchise for the South-coast territory. more
(10 May 2007 13:45)

Capital Pub Company set to float on AIM
Unbranded pubs group Capital Pub Company is reportedly poised to float on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) by the summer. more
(10 May 2007 13:15)

Pubs 'n' Bars takes ownership of Community Taverns
Pub owner and operator Pubs ‘n’ Bars has taken full ownership of Community Taverns for £2.45m increasing its estate to almost 100 boozers. more
(10 May 2007 12:45)

Industry protests as VisitBritain cuts staff by 11%
Senior hospitality figures have expressed dismay at the decision of tourism body VisitBritain to slash staff numbers by more than 11%. more
(10 May 2007 11:55)