Britain’s leading restaurant, pub and bar groups delivered fractional like-for-like sales growth of just 0.1% in February, signalling a challenging start to 2025 for the sector as consumers continue to remain watchful of their disposable income.
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Sky high have always been Gordon Ramsay’s ambitions, and his new Restaurant Gordon Ramsay High takes this vision quite literally. Based on floor 60 of the City of London’s tallest building, 22 Bishopsgate, the venue hopes to be a 12-seat chef’s table experience unlike any other. The three-sided dining table’s would-be fourth side takes in a stunning panorama of the capital. Diners can view the twinkling lights of Canary Wharf and the river traffic rounding the Isle of Dogs. The experience hopes to embody the legacy of Ramsay’s flagship three-Michelin-starred Chelsea restaurant while serving elevated neo-Nordic and Japanese-inspired dishes, guided by head chef James Goodyear. This venue is one of four new Gordon Ramsay Restaurants venues at 22 Bishopsgate.
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A new survey released by Lumina Intelligence suggests that a combination of inclement weather and financial pressures impacted on-trade visits in February 2025, although the pub sector enjoyed a relatively strong performance.
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Unpretentious and welcoming is the MO of the new NoNo wine bar in Leeds. Opening in the Dark Arches at Leeds’ buzzy Granary Wharf, the venue hopes to attract wine lovers both new and experienced. The venue opens on 20 March and is the latest venture from the West Yorkshire-based wine merchant Barrique Fine Wines. The 60-seat venue hopes to champion quality, terroir-driven wines for a new audience, and in doing so making wine discovery a less intimidating prospect for its patrons. The venue’s proximity to Leeds train station should be a boon for footfall, while its location in Granary Wharf will allow it to seamlessly slot into a thriving hub of hospitality venues.
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The second iteration of ZIMA, whose flagship Soho restaurant has done much to enlighten intrepid foodies on the diversity and delectability of Russian and Eastern European cuisine, opened in Not-ting Hill on Valentine’s Day. The 45-cover venue will hope to further refine ZIMA’s contemporary take on the region’s food by collaborating with Eastern European chefs who will bring forth their own contemporary interpretations of the cuisine. The first chef to take on this challenge will be Michelin-starred chef Evgeny Vikentev, a pioneer of modern Russian gastronomy. Expect every-thing from royal Siberian black caviar to pirozhki buns stuffed with beef, along with a selection of Georgian wines, at the new west London venue.
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Be Inclusive Hospitality has announced a year-long partnership with Bibendum Wine with the aim of fostering a ‘fairer and more inclusive hospitality industry’ via a series of initiatives focused on education, impactful networking and recognition.
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The first Labour-backed Budget of the new government is expected to have a significant impact on the balance sheet of popular pub group J D Wetherspoon, just as the company was on track to return to steady growth.
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Hallgarten & Novum Wines has announced a four-year sole-supply deal with The Jockey Club, the UK’s largest group in British horseracing. The deal makes Hallgarten the official wine supplier of the horseracing group.
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Data from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) can reveal that 63% of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) saw taxation as their primary business challenge. The data, which was gathered following the Autumn Budget, represents an increase compared to Q3 of 2024 when 48% of business owners saw it as their primary challenge.
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Figures from CGA by NIQ and RSM’s Hospitality Business Tracker reveal that year-on-year sales dropped by 1.3% in January 2025 compared to the same month last year. This represents only the tracker’s second recorded month of negative trading since early 2022.
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This year marks five years of Be Inclusive Hospitality (BIH). From the outset, we set out to build a thriving community of individuals and businesses committed to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).
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Recent reports indicate the UK government could introduce an Australia-style youth mobility scheme for EU citizens as part of efforts to reset post-Brexit relations. The decision could have significant implications for the hospitality sector which has faced recruitment challenges since Brexit.
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The Megaro Hotel in King’s Cross is set to open a new signature restaurant in collaboration with the much-vaunted Adam Simmonds. The Michelin star-winning chef hopes to provide Scandina-vian-inspired fare underpinned by bold flavours and a unique mission. His menu will look to explore food’s intimate ties to our senses and memories to provide an unconventional but thought-provoking dining experience (or ‘voyage’). As chef patron at the hotel, he will also oversee the operation of its all-day eatery Spagnoletti. The adventurous restaurant opens its doors on 29 January.
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A third offering from East London Mexican food aficionados sees the group open its first central London venue in Marylebone. The team, led by Edson Diaz-Fuentes and Natalie Feary, will be serving regional Mexican delights with an emphasis on guisados, slow-cooked traditional dishes and antojitos mexicanos, including hand-pressed corn dishes like empenadas. Their commitment to authentic Mexican cuisine is highlighted by bringing what were, until recently, inaccessible ingredients to UK shores, like purple heirloom corn for their antojitos. Adding to the fold British produce such as West Country venison for traditional dishes, the restaurant hopes to show the dynamism and creativity inherent to Mexican cuisine. Santo Remedio Casona & Cantina in Marylebone is set over two floors with 85 covers and a ground floor bar which will be serving tequila and mezcal cocktails.
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Glasgow is to gain a new gastropub offering early this month with The Noble Public House. The 100-cover venue is spearheaded by Glaswegian hospitality group The Superlative Collection which hopes to blend classic pub vibes with a gloss of premium bar sophistication. Standing out in Glasgow’s dynamic food and drinks scene is no mean feat but the new venue’s unique approach to familiar Scottish food and drink may help it do just that. On the drinks front this includes signature cocktails in a partnership with The Macallan whisky and beers from local brewery Jump Ship. Food will include British pub staples with a Caledonian twist, while the venue will open from 9am to entice intrepid commuters from the nearby Glasgow Central station to its breakfast menu.
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New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) can reveal hospitality had another strong month in December 2024, with output for the food and drink sector growing 2%. This made it the largest contributor to growth for the wider consumer-facing services industry.
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The UK’s ‘licensed’ venues saw virtually no change in total numbers last year, with 4078 closures and 4085 openings, according to the Hospitality Market Monitor, from CGA by NIQ and Alix Partners. The total number of venues, including pubs, bars, restaurant, nightclubs and hotels, sat at 99,120 operating in December 2024.
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Few followers of Harpers newsfeed could have missed the massive drive by Hallgarten & Novum Wines to bring aboard new agencies and staff in the wake of its acquisition by Coterie Holdings in December 2023. In the past 12 months alone, some 30 producers, along with 300 wines, have been added to the portfolio, backed by 30 new faces that have joined the team. And the upshot is a strengthened import and distribution business that is a serious force to be reckoned with, anchored by the investment and stability that Coterie has been able to provide.
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New figures from CGA RSM Hospitality Business Tracker shows year-on-year growth of 3.2% for December 2024, reflecting a month of boosted sales for hospitality.
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The changes to employer national insurance contributions (NICs) will see more than 774,000 workers newly eligible for the contributions. This figure represents almost 63% of workers who were previously ineligible. UKHospitality predicts this could cost the hospitality sector up to £1bn.
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