Two popular restaurant chains are set to close in the UK with the loss of 3,500 jobs - with restaurants in Darlington, Durham and across the North East also affected.
Whitbread, which owns Premier Inn, has confirmed it will shut its remaining Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants across the UK and Ireland as part of a five-year plan to save £250m amid rising business rates and national insurance costs.
The move will see the Beefeater at Morton Park, Darlington, close, along with Broomside Park Beefeater in Durham and Tindale Crossing Brewers Fayre at Bishop Auckland.
Other impacted North East sites include restaurants in North Tyneside, Sunderland, Hartlepool and Stockton.
The chains are usually found next to or inside Premier Inn hotels and have long been a familiar stop-off for families and travellers.
Beefeater has been on UK roadsides for more than 50 years, while Brewers Fayre was due to reach the same milestone in 2029, The Mirror reports.
The remaining restaurants are set to be replaced by a hotel-integrated food and drink model, Whitbread confirmed.
Around 30,000 people work for Whitbread, and while most will be kept on, about 3,800 jobs, roughly 12 per cent of staff, are expected to go as a result of the closures.
The locations due to close across the UK have now been confirmed, including sites in Darlington, County Durham and the wider North East.
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Here is the full list of Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants announced for closure in the North East:
Full list of North East Beefeater restaurants closing
- Morton Park, Darlington
- Broomside Park, Durham
- The Talpore, Stockton-on-Tees
- Whitley Bay, North Tyneside
Full list of North East Brewers Fayre restaurants closing
- Tindale Crossing, Bishop Auckland
- Old West Quay, Hartlepool
- The Wessington, Sunderland
- Royal Quays, North Shields
Whitbread chief executive Dominic Paul said: “We always challenge ourselves to improve and, in light of significant cost increases in the form of business rates and national insurance, as well as the implied market discount to our inherent value, we’ve looked hard at the options open to us to maximise value creation over the medium and long-term.
“This has been a rigorous process and we’ve approached all options with an open mind. Our new five-year plan builds on our strengths and drives a significant acceleration of our strategy.
“This plan will transform Whitbread into a higher-margin, higher-returning pure-play hotel business. We’re going to go further and faster to deliver a great experience for our guests and high-quality growth and returns for our shareholders.”
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