River Cottage comes to Royal William Yard
The new restaurant will be situated within the Brewhouse building, in a 4,725 sq ft corner plot overlooking the Plymouth Sound. It will include an outdoor bistro area for guests wishing to take in the stunning views. In total it will create excess of 25 jobs, with an economic impact estimated in the millions, including tourism, transport links and the food community with up to 90% of the food sourced within a 50-mile radius of the City. It will also add to the site’s growing restaurant offering at Royal William Yard following the recent announcement that Italian chain Prezzo has also just opened its doors at the scheme.
Speaking of the news Fearnley Whittingstall said: “‘We hope to promote a better understanding of the nature and origins of what we eat, and in local terms, to celebrate and contribute to the vibrancy of the local food community in Plymouth. The City and Region, have a strong fishing and market garden heritage, and I am looking forward to sourcing and creating some fantastic food in a wonderful location,”
It is the first Plymouth venture for the River Cottage brand, which includes restaurants and delis, cookery books and DVDs and a TV series. Urban Splash head of lettings Emily Handslip has long been a fan and speaking of the deal she said: “This is a real coup for us and for Royal William Yard. This is a nationally recognised brand with huge gravitas, which we are thrilled to welcome to the scheme. There’s definitely been a natural synergy between River Cottage and Urban Splash which helped us build our relationship and finalise the deal.”
The deal cements the presence of a high quality food offering at Royal Wililam Yard, something which started just 12 months ago when Loungers opted to open the Seco Lounge concept at the scheme. Their MD Alex Reilley explained: “Seco Lounge was the 14th restaurant to open under the Loungers brand, initially as a natural expansion of our portfolio into the South West. Its immediate impact showed that it was going to be a restaurant that would exceed expectations and we were delighted with its success. Earlier this year we took an additional unit within Mills Bakery to accommodate a growing customer base something that’s testament to how well the restaurant has been received by people at the Yard and in the wider community. We really are proud to be part of the food offering here.”
Martin Bloom, of consultants Insight Retail, who have been at the forefront in introducing the new brands to Plymouth and in particular Royal William Yard said: “The retail and leisure space at Royal William Yard is so unique and well located that it is attracting some fantastic eateries and restaurant concepts. River Cottage will really complement and add a new level of dining experience at the scheme. We are now looking forward to continuing to develop on the existing restaurant line-up so as to develop RWY as one of the new eating out quarters in Plymouth.”
The River Cottage Canteen and Deli now hopes to open late September, subject to successful licensing and planning approval.
In addition to restaurant space available at Royal William Yard, Urban Splash will also soon be announcing details of future office and retail space at New Cooperage, the fourth building it has redeveloped at the scheme.
