James McAllister

Brighton

Reporter at Restaurant

Senior reporter for @RestaurantMagUK • Sporadic tweeter • Cookbook enthusiast • Opinions my own

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Articles

Rockfish has appointed Knoops CMO Romy Miller and Mindful Chef founder Robert Grieg-Gran as non-executive directors

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

It follows the retirement of former Rockfish NED John Barnes and comes as the South West-based restaurant group prepares to open new sites in Lyme Regis, Salcombe and Sidmouth. Miller, whose previously spent eight years overseeing the marketing strategy at rapidly expanding upscale bakery chain Gail’s, will support Rockfish in its customer engagement and brand building.
Smash burger brand Supernova to double up in London

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

It is one of two new openings planned by BVC Hospitality, the operator behind Supernova, which launched its first site on Peter Street in Soho in September 2023 and gained viral popularity on social media through its tight menu of US-style smash burgers. Supernova’s will take over a 2,971sq ft site on North Audley Street for its second location in the capital. Alongside this, BVC Hospitality will also launch a new French-focused concept in Mayfair this summer called 74 Duke.
Bleecker Burger founder Zan Kaufman on the group's return to the expansion trail and dealing with inflation of beef prices

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

In August last year, Bleecker Burger opened its first new restaurant in five years, taking over a site on Tooley Street, just a few minutes’ walk from London Bridge station.
Big Mamma sees turnover rise to £44m

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Writing in its latest accounts on Companies House, the French-based Italian restaurant group said its five-strong London estate, which includes Gloria in Shoreditch, Ave Mario in Covent Garden and Carlotta in Marylebone, had ‘all performed strongly in excess of expectations, driven by strong customer feedback and brand awareness’. The group also opened its first regional site over the year, La Bellezza in Birmingham, which launched in November 2024.
Junk Group launches permanent London site for cookie brand Puffy

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Located next door to Junk’s debut restaurant on Old Compton Street, which launched last autumn, Puffy’s inaugural UK site serves a range of cookie varieties alongside a selection of freshly ground coffees from Origin Coffee. Cookie options include milk chocolate, chocolate trio, dark chocolate, chocolate duo and peanut butter, chocolate duo and hazelnuts, white chocolate and macadamia, and white chocolate and matcha.
The team behind Michelin-starred Hackney restaurant Casa Fofó to launch new wine bar and restaurant Bianca's in Stoke Newington

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Bianca’s will be a wine bar and restaurant serving seasonal dishes with influences of Italian and British cuisine. Adolfo De Cecco, who launched Casa Fofó in 2019 having previously worked as head chef at James Ramsden and Sam Herlihy’s Pidgin, will oversee the menu at Bianca’s, which is described as having ‘a more laid-back and comforting approach’ to its Hackney sister restaurant.
James Cochran joins Islington bar Little Bat as chef consultant

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Cochran, who stepped away from his role as executive chef at Islington gastropub The Brave in March after just four months, has created the new food menu alongside a refreshed wine and cocktail list. Dishes will ‘champion fresh, seasonal ingredients’ with starters including the chef’s signature crisp buttermilk fried chicken with jerk spiced hot honey glaze; and beer battered oysters dressed with bresaola ox sauce.
Jonny Mills secures permanent site for ‘hyper seasonal’ kitchen counter concept Sǣl

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Sǣl, which will mark Mills’s return to permanent bricks-and-mortar following the closure of his Leamington Spa restaurant The Tame Hare after the Covid-19 pandemic, has secured a site at The Goodsyard in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter. Holding just eight seats, the restaurant will operate one sitting per service, serving a ‘singular tasting menu’ that’s driven by ‘hyper seasonal produce’.
Black Bear Burger to open ‘biggest restaurant yet’ at Westfield London

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

The group has secured the former Salt Yard site on Arial way for its third full-service restaurant and its eighth location overall in the capital. Holding 100 covers, it will be more than double the size of Black Bear’s restaurants in Exmouth Market and Brixton. The group describes the opening as ‘an opportunity to reach a broader customer base’. “Opening at Westfield is a real pinch yourself moment,” says Stew Down, who launched Black Bear Burger with his wife Liz as a street food stall in 2016.
Big Mamma’s Canary Wharf restaurant to be called Barbarella

1 week ago | restaurantonline.co.uk | James McAllister |William Reed

Called Barbarella, the restaurant will be housed within the YY Building and feature a design of ‘sexy vintage Ferragamo silks and glitzy details’ with a mirrored glass bar, reflective 70s chromed lounge and an open kitchen. Roma-born chef Marco Rastelli will lead the food offering and serve a menu featuring a daily changing pizza selection; pasta dishes including a ‘one-metre long spaghettone’; Cornish lemon sole to share; and Phillip Warren steaks.