Pint Shop co-founder Richard Holmes announced plans to expand the meat, bread and beer concept in July last year after reporting a successful first six months of trade, following its launch in November 2013.
Expansion plans were going well, Holmes told the PMA after revealing the appointment of Guardian food writer and chef Rosie Sykes as the business’s new development chef.
“It’s [the expansion] is going well. We’re not going to say a lot more and we will be putting something out [about it] soon,” Holmes said.
Revealed before the end of October
Second site
It’s [the expansion] is going well. We’re not going to say a lot more and we will be putting something out [about it] soon
- Source: co-founder
Although he refused to give any details about a location, staffing or a launch date, it was likely all would be revealed before the end of October, he added.
Holmes and business partner Benny Peverelli were keen to expand the brand to areas such as London, Bath, Oxford, Bristol and Brighton, Holmes said last year.
According to reports in January this year, the pair were seeking £2 million to launch a second site in London. Holmes and Peverelli wanted to see a Pint Shop in every major south of England city, as well as one northern city within five years, the reports claimed.
Sykes, who was hired to overhaul the menu and make it more fun and reflective of Pint Shop’s ethos, had also worked with Homes and Peverelli to bring prices down and in line with those in other cities, Holmes added.
“If we are going into other cities we need to have our prices down a little in line with what else is out there,” he said.
Echo premium casual dining
The new site would echo the premium casual dining experience of the existing Pint Shop, which is housed in a converted office building and has a 50:50 wet:dry split, he said last year.
“While the look and feel of the new site will be consistent with what we have done before – with meat, bread and beer at its core – it won’t be overly formulaic.”
Meanwhile, Sykes had relaunched the Pint Shop’s menu with new dishes including Southern fried rabbit with green sauce, potted crab and sweetcorn fritters, bacon and egg croquettes with plum ketchup and overnight-cooked pork belly with braised cabbage, onions and smoked bacon.
She said: “Pint Shop is doing really amazing things and I was keen to be part of the story. I quickly realised that we share a lot of values; a love of British food; a commitment to impeccable provenance; and a passion for seasonality.”
On the new menu:
- Southern Fried Rabbit with Green Sauce
- Potted Crab and Sweetcorn Fritters
- Bacon & Egg Croquettes with Plum Ketchup
- Overnight Pork Belly with Braised Cabbage, Onions and Smoked Bacon
- The Pint Shop Cheeseburger
- 600g T-Bone Dry-Aged Steak for two
- Lemon and Salt Squid with Roasted Garlic Sauce
- Artichoke Chips with Blue Salt