Hotel Openings

🍜 Jerk Junction, a Manchester-based Caribbean street food brand, is set to open its first shopping centre location at Trafford Centre's Orient food court in September. Occupying a 917sq ft space, it'll offer dishes like jerk chicken and curried goat. Founder Jake Shaffi, leading since 2020, launched Jerk Junction in Chorlton in 2013. After a fire last summer, its original site reopens on 5 August. Shaffi aims to make Jamaican food more accessible in the UK.

🎯 Clays, following a £6m fundraise led by Otium Leisure and backing from Imbiba, is set to make its regional debut in Birmingham's Piccadilly Arcade. This will be its third location, adding to sites in Canary Wharf and The City. The Birmingham venue will offer a semi-private area or a fully-private room with six digitalised games. Food and drink will be available via kiosk ordering. Founder Tom Snellock expresses excitement for the expansion. Otium Leisure recognizes Clays as a leading brand in competitive socialising, supporting its growth journey. New launches are expected next year.

🏡 Virgin Hotels opened Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch and offers double Virgin Points for stays during September-December 2024 to members of The Know loyalty program. Guests earn 14 points per £1 spent on room rates. The hotel at 45 Curtain Road, features Spanish restaurant BiBo, a rooftop bar, pool, Marlin's Mediterranean restaurant, a gym, and treatment rooms of Blue Marlin Ibiza's sanctuary. The 120-bedroom hotel is undergoing a phased transformation, including a Commons Club and personalized services via the Lucy app.

🍴 Gerard Craft, head of St. Louis-based Niche Food Group, will open Expat BBQ in summer, featuring global flavors in American barbecue. Sam Nawrocki, with 15 years of Southern cuisine experience, leads the kitchen. Melinda Cooper oversees the beverage program, promising an international beer selection and globally-inspired cocktails. Average checks are forecasted to be $50 on the first floor and $25 on the third level. Expat BBQ will join Fordo’s Killer Pizza and Kitchen Bar at City Foundry STL, in a 16,000 square foot space featuring a conveyor belt for dish transport, a terrace patio, and a live music stage. Craft, a James Beard Award-winning chef, aims to offer a unique, fun dining experience.

🎷 The Marquee Moon, influenced by 1970s band Television, will open on 15 August as a pub in Dalston, formerly The Marquis of Lansdowne. Owned by Stuart Glen and Eugene Wild of The Cause, it features an East Asian-inspired sharing menu by New Zealand chef Huri Rapana Neil, along with a cocktail menu by Emmanuel Ferris-Hue focusing on local and independent drinks. The pub includes a hi-fi sound system for curated music until 3am, an 80-cover restaurant with Art Deco design, and operates until 3am.

🍴 The Coal Shed's largest project to date moves to North Street, Brighton, in Clarence House, seating 142 guests. Helalat's first concept, launched in 2011, now expands with executive chef Lee Murdoch. The menu will emphasize local produce, beef, and Brighton's seafood, featuring a Himalayan salt-ageing room and a 25-seat bar. The cocktail menu is inspired by NYC and London. Five distinct dining areas, including a private event space for 26, will be available. The current location will close on 1 September.

🏠 Mandarin Oriental to manage a new luxury resort and residences in Bali, opening in 2027, featuring 110 suites and villas with panoramic views of the Indian Ocean and a variety of amenities including a beach club and sustainability lab. 🎉 Super 8 celebrates its 50th anniversary with a throwback $8.88 room rate for 888 room nights starting August 8, following a $140+ million brand overhaul. 🛌 Marriott’s HotelHelp pilot donates emergency rooms in 5 U.S. cities to support human trafficking survivors, aiming to reach 25 North American cities by 2025 and expand globally. 🏨 IHG appoints 1508 to design three hotels in Nepal, adding nearly 500 rooms to its portfolio, with openings expected within two years.

🏢 The Alchemist will open a new site in January 2025 at 16 Eastcheap, near Monument station in the City of London. Spanning 5,549sq ft across ground and basement levels with 115 covers, the venue represents a £1.9m investment. This location joins six other London venues, complementing the area's history and the city's resurgence of corporate activity. Designed by Macaulay Sinclair, The Alchemist aims to provide a memorable experience in the heart of a corporate hub.

🍴 Chef Thomas Straker, known for his high-profile restaurant stints and social media presence, is set to open a new café-style concept at 60 Golborne Road, Notting Hill, following his first restaurant's launch at 91 Golborne Road in 2022. This upcoming deli will feature breakfast items like acai bowls and granola. Straker's debut restaurant garnered critical acclaim and secured a spot on the National Restaurant Awards Top 100 list in 2022. Despite success, Straker faced criticism for lacking diversity in his kitchen last year but has since pledged to improve. He also runs a flatbread outlet in Arcade Battersea and his retail range All Things Butter is available in Sainsbury's and Ocado.

🍽 Minneapolis’ new restaurant Bûcheron was opened by chef Adam Ritter and Jeanie Janas Ritter. Adam has a background in Michelin-starred and “World’s 50 Best” restaurants, recently leading Demi's menu development, a James Beard Awards Best New Restaurant-finalist. Jeanie worked at Chez Panisse then managed operations at various upscale locations. Meals at Bûcheron cost $60-75 per person without drinks. The menu draws from the Parisian Bistronomy movement, featuring dishes like a wedge salad with lamb bacon and a foie gras terrine. The wine list, managed by Tyler McLeod, emphasizes biodynamic wines and female winemakers, while the cocktail program by Will Gobeli adds small twists to classics. Located in Minneapolis' Kingfield neighborhood, Bûcheron was designed by Christian Dean Architecture with local art by Mary Jo Hoffman creating a warm, convivial atmosphere.