Friday Five: the week's top news
- Prezzo has confirmed it is to close 94 restaurants - almost a third of its estate - after entering in to a Company Voluntary Agreement. The group's CEO Jon Hendry-Pickup said that though Prezzo's core business had "fantastic potential" a number of its sites were "underperforming" due to "well-documented pressures" facing the casual dining industry. Several hundred of the 4,500 jobs at the group are expected to be impacted, though the company is understood to be aiming to redeploy staff to other restaurants in its portfolio.
- JKS Restaurants, the company behind Michelin-starred Indian restaurants Gymkhana and Trishna, is planning to open a string of curry houses in London under its Motu delivery brand. Founder Karam Sethi says the success of Motu, which is run through Deliveroo Editions, has given the group the confidence to create a high street format with a wider menu.
- Ollie Dabbous has announced his new London restaurant, Hide, will open its doors in April. The chef has teamed up with Hedonism Wines to launch the three-storey site, which will feature all-day a la carte options, a tasting menu and bar. It comes after Dabbous closed his London restaurants Barnyard and Michelin-starred Dabbous in 2017 to focus on the project.
- Gary Usher is planning to launch two new restaurants in the north-west. Pinion will open in Prescot, near Liverpool, while Kala will open in Manchester city centre. The chef, who crowdfunded his restaurants Burnt Truffle, Hispi and Wreckfish through Kickstarter, is planning to use the same method to finance Pinion.
- The team behind Keynsham pizza restaurant B Block have teamed up with chef Josh Eggleton to launch a new bistro in the town. Somer Dining is run by St Monica Trust head chef Gareth Cartledge and food development manager Adrian Kirikmaa. Eggleton, who runs the Michelin-starred Pony & Trap in nearby Chew Manga, has helped the pair create a "classic and seasonal" modern British menu.
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