New entries in this year's NRB power list include chefs, brewers and, er, Ryan Giggs
The North’s largest hospitality trade show, Northern Restaurant and Bar (NRB), kicked off at Manchester Central today, and accompanying the usual crowd-pullers, from the Chef Live Theatre to the Craft Beer Quarter, was the release of this year’s NRB Top 50 Power List - a roundup of northern hospitality’s biggest influencers.
Announced during an invite-only awards ceremony, the list – whittled down by a panel and ‘deliberated through hours of research and judging’ – spans 210 brands, 1012 sites and over 21,800 employees.
25 new names made the cut for 2017; including Living Ventures director Simon Potts, Filmore & Union owner Adele Ashley and footballers-turned-hospitality gurus, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs, for their work with GG Hospitality.
Alongside the Top Fifty, this year saw the presentation of three special awards: Jimmy del Guidice and Mark McQuater were chosen for taking on Revolution Bars and successfully overhauling the ailing brand; chef Gary Usher - of Sticky Walnut, Hispi and Burnt Truffle - was selected as ‘an individual who is living and breathing the model of what a contemporary restaurateur can be’; and Paul Moran and Jeremy Roberts of Living Ventures, who, despite the loss of Tim Bacon, ‘the heart and soul of their team and business’, have powered the company forward.
READ: Take a look around Grand Pacific - Living Ventures' lavish new bar and restaurant
Thom Hetherington, CEO of Northern Restaurant and Bar organisers Holden Media, said: “This year’s list has shown steady churn, with an influx of new entrants particularly from Yorkshire and the North East. Research by CGA Peach demonstrates that the region’s ambitious, independent operators are thriving despite increasing competition, and it is the people who make up the NRB Top Fifty who are driving this dynamic.”
“I think that in terms of volume, variety and sheer quality Northern food and drink lovers have never had it so good.”
NRB TOP FIFTY 2017
(listed alphabetically by surname and grouped by company - new entries in bold)
Sax Arshad, Director, Mughli
Haz Arshad, Director, Mughli
Adele, Ashley, Owner / Head Chef, Filmore & Union
Paul Askew, Chef Patron, The Art School
Mohammed Aslam MBE, Owner, Aagrah Group
Rob Bacon, Executive Chef Director, Hickory's Smokehouse
Jason Bligh, Director, Hickory's Smokehouse
Neil McDonnell, Managing Director, Hickory's Smokehouse
John Welsh, Operations Director, Hickory's Smokehouse
Craig Bancroft, Managing Director, Northcote
Nigel Haworth, Chef Patron, Northcote
Tim Bird, Owner, Cheshire Cat Pub & Bars
Mary Mclaughlin, Owner, Cheshire Cat Pub & Bars
Ken Buckley, Managing Director, Bravo Inns
Marie Carter, Director, Beautiful Drinks
Beau Myers, Director, Beautiful Drinks
Paul Cogan, Group Finance & Resources Director, Betty & Taylors Group
Rachel Fellow, Group Communications Director, Betty & Taylors Group
Philip Hanson, Non Exec Director, Betty & Taylors Group
Clare Morrow, Non Exec Director, Betty & Taylors Group
Berenice Smith, Non Exec Director, Betty & Taylors Group
Lesley Wild, Chair of the Board, Betty & Taylors Group
Sarah Cook, Director, Vaulkhard Group
Harry Vaulkhard, Director, Vaulkhard Group
Oliver Vaulkhard, Director, Vaulkhard Group
Sue Crimes, MD, Gusto
Morgan Davies, Founder / CEO, Barburrito
Stewart Davies, Group Operations Director, GG Hospitality
Ryan Giggs, Director, GG Hospitality
Gary Neville, Director, GG Hospitality
Jimmy del Giudice, Operations Director, Revolution Bars Group plc
Mark McQuater, CEO, Revolution Bars Group plc
Carlo Distefano, Chairman, San Carlo Group
Marcello Distefano, Managing Director, San Carlo Group
James Douglas, Co Owner / Director, Reds True BBQ
Scott Munro, Co Owner / Director, Reds True BBQ
Roy Ellis, Director, Mission Mars
Neil Macleod, Director, Mission Mars
Dan Mullen, Director, Mission Mars
Joel Wilkinson, Director, Mission Mars
Adelaide Winter, Director, Mission Mars
John Ennis, Owner, Graffiti Spirit
Matthew, Farrell, Owner, Graffiti Spirit
Nick, Thomas, Owner, Graffiti Spirit
Ged Feltham, CEO, Leelex
Paul Lane, Managing Director, Leelex
Jobe Ferguson, Director, Blackdog Ballroom & The Liars Club
Lyndon Higginson, Director, Blackdog Ballroom & The Liars Club
Ross Mackenzie, Director, Blackdog Ballroom & The Liars Club
Duncan Fisher, Owner, Apartment Group
Kit Graves, Director, Lake District Hotels
Charles Graves, Director, Lake District Hotels
Dani Hope, Sales & Marketing Director, Lake District Hotels
John Gyngell, Director, North Bar / North Brewing Company
Christian Townsley, Director, North Bar / North Brewing Company
Jamie Hawksworth, Owner, Pivovar / The Tapped Brew Co
Jonathon Holdsworth, Founder, Pivovar / The Tapped Brew Co
Chris Hill, Managing Director, New World Trading Company
Chris Hopkins, MD, Hydes Brewery
Matthew Jones, Managing Director, Jones Bar Group
Ben Jones, Operations & Finance Director, Jones Bar Group
Ban Kaewkraikhot, Owner / head Chef, Sukhothai
Kim Kaewkraikhot, Chairwoman, Thai Leisure Group
Martin Stead, Owner, Thai Leisure Group
Terry Laybourne, Owner, 21 Hospitality Group
William Lees Jones, Managing Director, JW Lees
Colin Manning, Managing Partner, 60 Hope St
Gary Manning, Chef Patron, 60 Hope St
Tomas Maunier, Director, Fazenda Rodizio Bar & Grill
Robert Melman, Director, Fazenda Rodizio Bar & Grill
Stephen Miles, General Manager, Radisson Blu Edwardian Manchester
Paul Moran, Managing Director, Living Ventures
Jeremy Roberts, CEO, Living Ventures
Lucy Nelson, Sales & Marketing Director, Nelson Hotels
Andrew Nelson, Operations Director, Nelson Hotels
Joycelyn Neve, Managing Director, Seafood Pub Company
Michael O'Hare, Chef-Patron, The Man Behind the Curtain
Andrew Pern, Owner / Executive Chef, The Star at Harome/Star Inn The City
Steve Pilling, Co Owner, Damson Group
Simon Stanley, Co Owner, Damson Group
Jonathan Poole, Director, Red and Blue
Paddy Smith, Director, Red and Blue
Simon Potts, Managing Director, The Alchemist Bar & Restaurant
Oliver Robinson, Managing Director, Frederic Robinson
Simon Rogan, Co Owner, Umbel Restaurant Group
Franco Sotgiu, Co Owner, Solita
Chris Ure, Owner, Arc Inspirations
Martin Wolstencroft, Managing Director / Owner, Arc Inspirations
Gary Usher, Owner, Sticky Walnut
Steven Walker, CEO, Individual Restaurants
Marc Wilkinson, Chef Patron, Restaurant Fraiche
Image top: NRB Tony Lyons, Kuits; Jimmy del Guidice, Revolution Bars; Paul Moran, Living Ventures; Gary usher, Sticky Walnut; Thom Hetherington, Holden Media web
