Story of the week: Italian restaurant chain Strada became the big winner in this year's Caterersearch.com Web Awards, picking up the title of Website of the Year and winner of the Restaurant - Group category.
Raymond Blanc chose the winner of The Restaurant last night, but the decision hasn't gone down too well.
Friday Wrap wouldn't be Friday Wrap without news from Gordon Ramsay. Apparently the star of the F Word aspires to a life out of the kitchen and on TV.
Richard Balfour-Lynn's hotel group, MWB, is hoping to raise £27.5m through a new share issue in a bid to remedy financial damage done by the recession. Also this week, the hotel mogul presented the Variety Club of Great Britain with a cheque for £300,000 at the club's annual Christmas lunch on 15 December.
The UK hotel market is facing a recovery rather than a growth period in 2010, research has warned.
Moore Place, a restaurant and bar in Esher, Surrey, which featured in the first series of the Channel 4 TV programme Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, is to be demolished and a 50-bedroom luxury country house hotel built in its place.
The British 'staycation' proved to be more than just an annoying catchphrase, with the number of holidays taken at home this summer up more than 20%, official figures revealed today.
The Ipswich-based company, Elizabeth Hotels, has been placed in administration, and a buyer is being sort for the business.
The 333 metre-high Rose Rayhaan by Rotana in Dubai will open as the world's tallest single-use hotel later this month. However, it will soon be surpassed when the Ritz-Carlton in Hong Kong opens next year.
Christmas trading is set to boost the restaurant market by over 20% but consumers are likely to cut their spending again in the New Year due to the continued economic downturn, research has found.
Whitbread expects to exceed expectations for its full financial year after strong performance by Costa Coffee helped to drive a rise in sales for the third quarter. The company has also made a £36m cash offer for Coffeeheaven, the UK-owned operator of 90 coffee shops in central and eastern Europe.
Contract caterer Aramark's Healthcare division has been awarded a £50m contract to provide food and cleaning services at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust in Beckenham.
The Orchid Group, the managed pub chain, has rescued 43 Premium Bars and Restaurants (PBR) sites from administration.
Shareholders in recession-hit pub landlord Punch Taverns have voted down the latest remuneration package for the company's directors, at the group's annual meeting on Wednesday.
Restaurant Associates, Compass Group's executive dining division, has added another high-profile win to the catering giant's burgeoning portfolio in the form of a new contract with Aviva worth £25m in total.
Finally, Merry Christmas from all at Friday Wrap and if you have time, do check out our festive tales from the hospitality world.
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Quote of the Week
"The life-cycle of the Brussels sprout is one of nature's mysteries. Like the mayfly, it spends the vast majority of its life unseen, then emerges for one day a year and nobody knows why"
Jonathan Raggett, 2009 Hotelier of the Year, ponders the meaning of our least-loved vegetable