Cafe-bar group Loungers is launching a new roadside restaurant chain, with the first three branches opening in Devon and Cornwall next year.
The Bristol-founded company, which operates more than 200 Lounges and Cosy Club venues around the UK, is aiming to “reinvigorate” the “tired and uninspiring” roadside dining sector in Britain, it said.
The new brand - called Brightside - will be mainly based on A-roads and will sell freshly cooked “comfort-food dishes”, according to Loungers, including brunch, burgers and pizzas.
The group has already acquired three sites, the first of which is set to open on the A38, south of Exeter, in February 2023. Further branches will open on the A303 near Honiton and on the A38, near Saltash, in the spring.
“The group sees great potential to reinvigorate roadside dining in the UK,” the company said. “[The sites] will focus on bringing genuine hospitality back to a sector that has been dominated by drive-thru and quick-service restaurant concepts in recent years.”
Loungers said its new brand would focus on all-day dining, similar to its other brands.
Alex Reilley, founder and chair of Loungers, said: “We’ve had the itch for a while now to create a roadside restaurant concept that’s fit-for-purpose in the twenty-first century. For many people, the highlight of childhood road trips in days gone by was a stop at the likes of Little Chef. We believe there is a gap in the market for a fresh concept that gives customers the option to take a proper break and enjoy wholesome food and great hospitality.”
Mr Reilley said the company had plans to roll out the concept across the UK in the next few years and he hoped the Brightside brand would bring “proper hospitality” back to roadside dining.
“We want it to be an integral part of our customers’ journey-planning, and something both adults and children alike look forward to. We believe that Brightside will really shake up what has become an uninspiring sector,” he added.
Loungers recently announced it was accelerating its site roll-out programme, targeting 30 new openings in the current financial year and between 32 and 34 on an ongoing basis.
The initial three Brightside openings fall within these forecast new site opening numbers. Loungers opened its 210th site – Barco Lounge in Selby - on Saturday, November 5.
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