One restaurant group that is getting support from its bank is Di Maggio’s. The Clydesdale Bank has agreed a £15 million funding package for the group’s property arm to help fund its expansion. The group is owned and operated by Mario Gizzi and Tony Conetta. This month alone Gizzi and Conetta have opened two new [...]

Scotland’s hotels are outperforming the rest of the UK, according to PKF’s latest monthly snapshot of hotel occupancy levels. In May, occupancy levels rose by 0.6% to 77% compared with the same time last year with England reporting 73.3% occupancy rates and Wales 74.9%.Yield per room also increased by 3.1% to £55.83 in Scotland. The [...]

Belhaven Brewery, one of Scotland’s oldest breweries, has launched an new permanent cask ale Belhaven IPA.  Belhaven’s Head Brewer George Howell says: “Belhaven IPA, our new cask ale is an exciting new development for us. Consumers are buying in to the fresh, natural and crafted nature of cask ale. As cask is one thing drinkers cannot [...]

Castle Leisure Group (CLG), the Stirling-based pub group owned by brothers Paul and Stephen Smith, has gone under. The group which was established in 1981 operates venues in Edinburgh, Falkirk, Stirling, Dumbarton and Dunfermline. These include the City and Sportsters units as well as two units the group purchased last year after Dark Star went [...]

Brugal, the Caribbean’s number one selling rum, is launching Brugal Blanco Especial (40% ABV), a new class of white rum that has been taking the Caribbean by storm. In contrast to other white rums on the market, Brugal Blanco Especial is made from golden rum that has been double distilled and then triple filtered to [...]

Publicans across the UK will be able to offer drinkers a new measure of beer – 2/3rds of a pint – from October 1 this year. The measure is popular in some parts of the world, including Australia, because it is less likely to grow warm in the sun. The 2/3 pint will be allowed [...]

Although there’s plenty of choice when it comes to soft drinks in the off-trade, when it comes to the on-trade are we stuck in a rut? Susan Young takes a look at the market. Coke, Irn Bru, Red Bull and Schweppes splits – licensees were buying these brands for their customers a decade ago, and [...]

Buzzworks has opened its second Scotts in Largs. Jason Caddy issues his verdict on the design. There’s a buzz in Largs at the moment. The proprietor of the local petrol station enquired after where I was heading and, when I mentioned Scotts at the Yacht Harbour, his eyes lit up. As it turns out he’d [...]

The WHISKI Rooms in Edinburgh opened its three doors last month. It combines a bar, bistro and a shop, on North Bank Street off the Mound, Edinburgh. But it very nearly was just two doors, according to co-owner, Anne Still. She explains, “We had secured the lease on former gift shops at numbers 4 and [...]

The Illicit Still in Aberdeen was only ever in need of a little nip and tuck, rather than a full-on face lift, despite the wear and tear of years at the top as part of Saltire Taverns’ portfolio. This was the challenge for new owners, The Signature Pub Group, who took over last May. Earmarking [...]