Essex restaurants saved after Queensway Inns buys former Whitbread sites

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 12 Oct, 13:29 · Archive

Two Essex restaurants in Colchester and Clacton have been saved from closure after Queensway Inns bought them from Whitbread.

Queensway Inns has saved 53 eateries, pubs and inns from permanent closure after Whitbread retired five restaurant brands. Two former Table Table restaurants—at Balkerne Gate in Colchester and Bowling Green in Clacton—are among the venues being transformed into what Queensway Inns calls 'value pubs'. Both sites are listed as open and operating on Google.

Whitbread retired Bar + Block, Table Table, Cookhouse + Pub, Beefeaters and Brewers Fayre last month, citing challenges from 'significant cost increases'. More than 261 UK sites closed in September, costing approximately 3,800 jobs. The closures form part of Whitbread's five-year growth strategy intended to deliver £250 million in cost savings and support further expansion.

Queensway Inns said the venues have been transformed into a new chain of 'value pubs', potentially giving more than 900 staff new roles. The group said all sites would reopen as soon as possible, with the first planned for mid-November. The sites are expected to remain restaurants, serving hotel guests and other diners throughout the day.

Under its five-year survival plan, Whitbread will convert some former eateries into 600 new hotel rooms. Separately, Common Table Group announced on 7 October that it planned to buy 57 Beefeater, Brewers Fayre and Cookhouse sites, plus one Premier Inn hotel, with more than 700 jobs expected when those sites reopen. Common Table Group has yet to confirm which restaurants and pubs it will acquire.

How it is being reported

• Two Essex restaurants saved from closure as they become ‘value pubs’Essex restaurants in Colchester and Clacton saved from closure as Queensway Inns buys former Whitbread Table Table sites, with 53 venues to reopen.Colchester Gazette · 12 Oct, 13:00
• Two Essex restaurants saved from closure as they become ‘value pubs’Essex restaurants in Colchester and Clacton saved from closure as Queensway Inns buys former Whitbread Table Table sites, with 53 venues to reopen.Brentwood Guardian · 12 Oct, 13:00
• Two Essex restaurants saved from closure as they become ‘value pubs’Essex restaurants in Colchester and Clacton saved from closure as Queensway Inns buys former Whitbread Table Table sites, with 53 venues to reopen.Echo (Basildon) · 12 Oct, 13:00

In this story: Queensway Inns · Whitbread · Colchester · Clacton · Common Table Group

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