Jamie Oliver has his sights set on the United States and he’s looking for partners.
The celebrity chef who initially gained fame 25 years ago on the BBC TV series “The Naked Chef” has continued his television and cookbook-writing career, as well as his ongoing advocacy for childhood nutrition, but he also operates some 64 restaurants with more than 2,000 employees in more than 20 countries, with more to come.
“We just opened in Athens [Greece] and Montenegro, and then our next opening is kind of a cool little pasta bar in Belgrade [Serbia],” Jamie Oliver Group director Ed Loftis said, adding that some 15 restaurants of different concepts are slated to open this year with a total of 20 projects over the next 18 months.
They’re all casual concepts, including the new Jamie Olver Cathereine St., in London’s Covent Garden, and Jamie Oliver Chequer Lane, which recently opened in Dublin, Ireland. The focus of all of them is on good food, responsibly sourced. Loftis said that reflects Oliver’s own background.
“Jamie grew up in his mum and dad’s pub in the middle of the English countryside. Very traditional British fair,” Loftis said. “And pubs are super accessible.” They’re a gathering spot for the communities where they operate, and Oliver wants that feeling to be reflected in his own restaurants, Loftis said, including Jamie Oliver Kitchen, Jamie’s Italian, Jamie Oliver’s Diner, Jamie Oliver’s Pizzeria, and Jamie’s Deli.
“We’re never going to do Michelin-star food. That’s not what we’re about,” Loftis said. “We’re busy restaurants. We serve hundreds and hundreds of people every day — in some markets thousands of people. It’s volume at a high standard, but you’re never going to see a pair of tweezers in our kitchen. It’s about the best sourced food, treated with respect, and served with warm hospitality.”
They like working with local producers. For example, when they opened a pizzeria in India, rather than importing buffalo mozzarella from Italy, they found a buffalo farmer and bought the milk from them.
“The U.S. has got some amazing produce. We’d love to find that produce, get to understand it, and bring it to life in a really exciting way with an authentic British-style menu,” Loftis said. “We want to bring a little bit of Jamie’s childhood to the U.S. — some traditional-ish British food and some of that pub culture.”
Traditional-ish, because Oliver puts his own twist on things. For example, his fish & chips is made with monkfish that’s brined, steamed, battered, and fried.
“It’s the best fish & chips you’ll ever have in your life,” Loftis said. “We make the pickles and tartare sauce from scratch.”
For the sausage-and-mashed potato dish bangers & mash, Oliver and his team would find the best local hog breeds from the best producers and make the sausage in-house.
“We really want to create little hubs of energy that everyone can come and enjoy,” Loftis said.
As for where in the U.S. Oliver would like to open, Loftis said it depends on the partner they find. Although their focus is on New York City, which Oliver visits for work at least twice a year anyway, or California.
“That’s where we’d love to be. Who knows where we’ll end up?” Loftis said.
The Jamie Oliver Group already has 16 partners, some smaller entrepreneurial companies and others with multinational contracts.
“We’re quite flexible,” Loftis said. “There’s definitely some business things to consider [such as adequate working capital and experience running restaurants] but really it’s about chemistry. We’re getting married, we’re doing this thing, we want to have a good time.”
So similar corporate culture is important — focus on hospitality and being a people-forward company, as well as an entrepreneurial spirit.”
“What we want to do in the U.S. is create something unique, something that has a sense of place … and a love of food.”
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]
