Frankie & Benny's

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frankie & Benny's
TypeNew York-Italian 1950s themed restaurant chain
Founded1995; 26 years ago (1995)
HeadquartersLondon, England, UK
Number of locations
95[1]
OwnerThe Restaurant Group
Websitewww.frankieandbennys.com

Frankie & Benny's is a chain of Italian-American-themed restaurants in the United Kingdom run by The Restaurant Group.[2][3] As of February 2020 it had 236 outlets nationwide.[1] It also trades on delivery services Deliveroo and Uber Eats under the virtual restaurant brands of Birdbox, Stacks, and Devonly Pies.[4]

History[]

Typical entrance to a Frankie & Benny's restaurant, in Swindon
Night time appearance of entrance to a Frankie and Benny's restaurant, located at Xscape, Glasgow

The fictional story[5] is that in 1924, at the age of 10, Frankie Giuliani left Sicily with his parents and moved to “Little Italy” in New York City. Within a year of moving, the family had opened a restaurant, everybody helping with the building and the cooking in equal measure. Frankie went to the nearby high school and became lifelong friends with Benny, already a third-generation American. In the story, the business was taken over by Frankie and Benny in 1953. It combines popular American food with traditional Italian dishes.[6]

Owners, The Restaurant Group attempted to reinvent the brand in January 2017.[7] In 2019, 18 branches were closed and, in February 2020, The Restaurant Group announced that further closures were planned to take place by the end of 2021.[8]

Seven new vegan dishes were added to the menu in January 2020.[9]

On 3 June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, The Restaurant Group told employees a "large number" of its Frankie & Benny's outlets would not reopen after lockdown;[10] up to 120 restaurants were set to close permanently.[11]

Controversy[]

In 2014, a Frankie & Benny's customer complained after he was served a crab dish containing surimi. The item was eventually removed from the menu.[12]

In November 2015, the chain was given the lowest rating (red) in an assessment of the sustainability of its seafood products.[13]

In December 2017, an alcoholic drink was served to a four-year-old girl in the Warrington branch. A spokesman for the chain apologised for the incident which was described as a "genuine human error."[14]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "All Frankie & Benny's Restaurants". Frankie & Benny's. The Restaurant Group. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  2. ^ "The Restaurant Group". Archived from the original on 20 January 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
  3. ^ Negus, Richard: "When trading down is affected by your good covenant" Journal of Retail & Leisure Property 6.1 (2007): page 84-91
  4. ^ Beardsworth, Luke (2019-06-28). "Restaurants accused of lacking transparency over 'virtual brands'". LancsLive. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  5. ^ "Frankie & Benny's". Frankie and Benny's. The Restaurant Group. Archived from the original on 15 June 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2012. Frankie Giuliani was 10 [when in 1924 his family] left Sicily [and] moved in with relatives in ‘Little Italy’ [and] the family opened a restaurant within a year, everybody helping with the building and the cooking in equal measure. [..] Frankie went to the nearby High School and became lifetime friends with Benny, already a third generation American. In 1953 Poppa retired and Frankie and Benny took over the business, combining the best of popular American food with traditional Italian dishes.
  6. ^ "Eating Out: Frankie & Benny's in Kidderminster". Birmingham Mail. 9 March 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  7. ^ Sam Dean (25 January 2017). "Restaurant Group to revamp Frankie and Benny's menu as sales plunge". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  8. ^ "Frankie & Benny's owner speeds up closures". BBC News. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  9. ^ "Frankie & Benny's Introduce Meat-Free Mondays With All-New Vegan Menu". Vegan Life Magazine. Prime Impact Events & Media. 10 January 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  10. ^ Jones, Lora (2 June 2020). "Frankie & Benny's owner: Some sites won't reopen". BBC News. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  11. ^ Butler, Sarah (3 June 2020). "Frankie & Benny's owner to permanently close 120 restaurants". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  12. ^ Lawrence, Felicity (2 May 2014). "Diner is left shellshocked over crab dish". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  13. ^ Smithers, Rebecca (18 November 2015). "More than half of UK's family restaurant chains serving unsustainable seafood". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  14. ^ "Warrington Frankie & Benny's serves girl, 4, alcohol". BBC News. 2 January 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2020.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""