{"id":8405,"date":"2011-12-14T14:03:44","date_gmt":"2011-12-14T14:03:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jomec.co.uk\/altcardiff\/?p=8405"},"modified":"2011-12-14T14:03:44","modified_gmt":"2011-12-14T14:03:44","slug":"in-depth-cardiff-and-the-celebrity-restaurant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/2011\/12\/14\/in-depth-cardiff-and-the-celebrity-restaurant\/","title":{"rendered":"In Depth: Cardiff and the celebrity restaurant"},"content":{"rendered":"

Will proposed plans for a Marco Pierre White restaurant damage Cardiff\u2019s independent diners?<\/h2>\n

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Over the past few years, the development of Cardiff\u2019s city centre has been thriving. With the opening of St David\u2019s 2 and the redevelopment of Mill Lane, the Welsh capital has never had more to offer to its residents and visitors. Now it seems that three-time Michelin star-awarded chef Marco Pierre White could want a slice of the action. Bristol based company, Sanguine Hospitality are in talks to include one of Pierre White\u2019s MPW: Steakhouse and Grill restaurants as part of a \u00a39 million redevelopment of Queen Street\u2019s Dominions House which they plan to convert into a three star hotel. If the deal does go through, this would be a big draw for Cardiff\u2019s tourism industry, but could this be at the expense of smaller, independent restaurants?<\/p>\n

Ed Townsend, Head of PR at Cardiff and Co, who promote the city, thinks that the development of the Dominions House is a great idea saying, \u201cCardiff is developing rapidly and the only thing it is lacking is a Michelin Star, if Marco Pierre White does open a restaurant then it can only benefit the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Townsend also believes that the development of big name restaurants such as Pierre White will not have an adverse effect on smaller scale businesses because there is a large demand for more restaurants saying, \u201cCardiff has a growing market for restaurants. The company who is looking to turn the Dominions into a hotel are clearly confident that there will be business to be had\u201d.<\/p>\n

But is it as clear-cut as this? Cardiff and Co may be welcoming the development with open arms but will Cardiff\u2019s longer serving restaurants feel the same way?<\/p>\n

Creating Competition <\/strong><\/p>\n

2 years ago, Jamie Oliver decided to open a Cardiff branch of his chain of affordable high street restaurants, Jamie\u2019s Italian. Never without a queue on a Saturday night, Cardiff can\u2019t seem to get enough of the celebrity chef endorsed dining experience. Sarah Smith, manager at Jamie\u2019s Italian, claims that there was hostility toward the restaurant when it first opened. \u201cYou have quite a few independents around here and there was a lot of vicious rumours flying around about the restaurant when it first opened\u201d she said. As Cardiff\u2019s first celebrity chain restaurant, it is perhaps unsurprising that with no direct competition, the Cardiff branch is one of Jamie\u2019s most profitable.<\/p>\n

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