Birmingham continues to attract an influx of upmarket brands in the leisure, retail and hospitality sectors, with the latest being celebrity chef Marco Pierre White.
The TV chef will next month debut his Marco’s New York Italian brand at Birmingham Airport’s Holiday Inn hotel, replacing the current Grill Room restaurant. At present, the unit has space for 120 covers and will serve a range of dishes including handmade pizzas, steak, pasta and seafood.
Before the new restaurant opens in the middle of May, the unit will undergo an extensive fit out at a cost of around £200,000. The owners of the Holiday Inn will operate the restaurant under a franchise agreement, which was struck with Marco’s New York Italian representative Black and White Franchising.
Holiday Inn general manager Jason Hiley believes that Marco’s New York Italian will prove to be a big hit with guests, along with visitors to the nearby NEC and upcoming Genting Arena developments.
He says; “The opening of Marco’s New York Italian is perfect for our hotel and is one of the last pieces of the jigsaw in the hotel’s development.
“It follows a series of improvements at the venue over the past two years, which has made the hotel a real hub for the community, as well as the ideal place to stay for those travelling from the airport.
“The presence of a Marco Pierre White restaurant will bring an exciting vibe to the hotel and will sit well with those looking to do business in a relaxed setting as well as visitors to the NEC.”
The new restaurant unit is expected to create 10 new full and part time jobs, bringing the total number of employees on site to 40. A number of the new roles are expected to attract applicants from nearby Solihull, which is another consumer target zone for the restaurant.
Yet it is not only Birmingham which will benefit from the roll out of the Marco’s New York Italian brand, as Black and White Franchising is also in the process of preparing a further two locations which have not yet been revealed. These will add to the ten New York Italians, eight Steakhouse Bar and Grills and one Wheeler’s of St James premises encompassed under the umbrella of Marco Pierre White.
