Guy Woodward: I'm not trying to do sommeliers out of a job, but...

Sunshine gives pubs and restaurant a lift

Pub and restaurants grew like-for-like sales by 3.8% last month compared to March 2018 when trade was hit by the ‘Beast from the East’, according to the Coffer Peach Business Tracker.

Hospitality gender pay gap in London narrows

The gender pay gap in London’s top hospitality establishments narrowed to 5.9% (£1,784) in 2018 compared to 9.7% (£2,712) in 2017, according to new data.

Hospitality missing out on gamification, claims report

The hospitality sector is losing out on increased productivity by not making use of gamified rewards, according to a new report.

Bacardi reveals UK cocktail competition finalist

Bristol based bartender Chelsie Bailey has been revealed as the UK finalist in the 2019 Bacardi Legacy Cocktail Competition. She will now compete at the global final in Amsterdam in May.

William Grant & Sons’ brings back ‘Unwrapped’ tour

William Grant & Sons’ UK Brand Ambassador team is extending its “industry-leading initiative” Unwrapped: The Other Side of Bartending – to Bristol, Manchester and London in 2019.

Northern Hospitality announces Power List winners

The Kuits NRB Top Fifty 2019 has been revealed at Northern Restaurant & Bar 2019.

Joe Fattorini: On wine, lemons and cow shit

Head of London sales at Fields, Morris & Verdin

Diageo World Class strips out semi-finals for “streamlined” admissions

Diageo Reserve has taken out several steps in the admissions process for its World Class bartender competition, promising to make it easier than ever for up and coming talent to apply.

Northern restaurant and bar boom continues

The number of restaurants and bars in Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds increased by an average of 19% during the past five years, according to new research.

Pernod Ricard appoints new on-trade channel director

Pernod Ricard has promoted James Bremner, currently customer business manager, to the position of on-trade channel director.

Jeroboams and Rick Stein raise £5,000 toast to The Benevolent

Jeroboams, Château d’Yquem and Rick Stein have raised an impressive charitable sum thanks to an experimental evening pairing fine wines of Bordeaux with the "best of British” seafood.

Restaurants continue to struggle as consumers tighten purse strings ahead of Brexit

The restaurant trade suffered another tough month in February with the mini heatwave towards the end of the month failing to move the whole market much, despite an encouraging performance from the pub trade.

Q&A: Matteo Montone, Berners Tavern

Next month Jason Atherton’s Berners Tavern at The London Edition is launching a series entitled An Introduction to Wine, hosted by director of wine Matteo Montone. On Monday nights 12 guests will be guided through the basics of wine in the restaurant’s private dining room, with each guest receiving 15% off their bill if they dine in the restaurant afterwards.

Veeno bought back from the brink with buyout

Veeno has been saved by investors who have rescued the Italian wine café’s 15-strong estate.

UK and non-EU workers plugging London’s hospitality recruitment gap

Workers from the UK and outside the UK are picking up the slack from the declining number of EU nationals applying to work in hospitality jobs in the UK.

Liberty on-trade report shows premium wine in value growth

In what can only be described as turbulent times for the industry – marred by everything from a looming Brexit to duty hikes, staff shortages alongside wage increases and a significant drop in Britain’s core wine drinkers – the trade is facing an uphill struggle with good news stories few and far between.

Carluccio’s boss calls out casual dining operators for aggressive expansion plans

Carluccio’s CEO has criticised the UK restaurant sector for focusing on “capex-heavy investments” – the same focus which almost brought the chain to brink of collapse last year.

Quality drink offer increasingly important in tough casual dining market

The perceived quality and value for spend delivered by operators in the casual dining market is the strongest driver both of customer retention and new footfall, according to on-trade insights consultancy CGA.

UK still ‘litmus test’ as global benchmark for wine brands

The UK market continues to be the shop window for the world of wine, with the on-trade driving premium sales.