French Franck takes over Overton Grange
Overton Grange, the former Michelin-starred hotel in Ludlow, Shropshire, has a new owner.
The hotel, a former Caterer Adopted Business, has been sold to Frenchman Franck Choblet. It has 14 bedrooms and a 35-seat restaurant, Les Marches.
Former owner Christine Ward put the property on the market just over a year ago, shortly after it lost its Michelin star in January 2001.
French chef Claude Bosi earned the hotel its star in 1999 but left the following year to open his own restaurant, Hibiscus, also in Ludlow. He was replaced at Overton Grange by current head chef Wayne Vickerage, formerly head chef at Nunsmere Hall in Northwich, Cheshire.
Choblet, who has worked in the restaurant industry for 25 years, paid more than the £900,000 guide price for the property through agent Knight Frank.
Knight Frank also announced this week the sales of the Metropole in Padstow, Cornwall, and the George III in Snowdonia.
The 50-bedroom Metropole, previously owned by Macdonald Hotels, has been sold to Richardson Hotels for £5m.
The 17th-century George III hotel, in Penmaenpool, Gwynedd, has been sold to Mortal Man Inns for more than the £1.1m guide price. It was owned by John and Julie Cartwright, who have retired.
by Louise Bozec
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 11 - 17 July 2002