Wykeham's gastros grow

A gastro pub company that opened its first outlet 12 months ago is set to expand with the opening of four more food venues by May next year.

Devon-based Wykeham Inns, headed by property entrepreneur John Steven, won a coveted AA rosette at its first venture, the Dartmoor Union Inn at Holbeton, within four months of opening.

Now Steven and his team hope to repeat their success at four more gastro pubs and restaurants: the Webb Hotel at Liskeard, Cornwall, is set to open by December; the Rose & Crown, Yealmpton, Devon, is expected to open by Christmas after a major refurbishment; the company has bought the St Elizabeth, a former convent in Plymouth, Devon; and terms have recently been agreed for the lease of a waterside property in the Barbican area of the city to be converted into a bar and restaurant.

Steven predicts an annual turnover exceeding £8m and the creation of more than 100 local jobs across the five venues.

'We are entering a frantic round of development but aim to have five units open and trading by next May, he said.

Steven and his head chef Graham Ledwith took the local gastro scene by storm last year, with the Dartmoor Union. The pub will open its new micro brewery if trial brews are up to standard.

'We were bowled over to get the AA rosette so soon at the Dartmoor and we will be working hard to take on the right quality chefs and staff to provide the same offering at our other venues, he said. We are heavily into local sourcing of raw materials, which, in a coastal location such as Devon, obviously includes fresh seafood.

The company has taken the healthy eating message into local schools with a series of cookery demonstrations, which it is keen to continue, and is also working on a project with Plymouth College of Education which could see the formation of a mini cookery academy.

The school visits involve basic cookery lessons that focus on tasty ways to eat fruit and vegetables and ways of preparing healthy pizzas.

The college scheme is designed to attract more students into the catering industry.