Diners spoilt for choice amid restaurant boom

Published on Tuesday 22 April 2008 22:03

RECORD numbers of restaurants, cafés and bistros have opened their doors in Scotland's two main cities over the last year, it emerged yesterday.

Compilers of an industry "bible" noted more than 100 arrivals in the past 12 months.

About a third are believed to be brand new operations, as opposed to established premises changing hands or opening up under new guises.

The List's annual eating and drinking guide features 112 new entries this year, compared with just 85 in 2005 and 103 last year. The magazine's food experts believe the restaurant scene in each city is stronger than ever, with independent firms expanding into new sites and established names surviving the wave of newcomers.

The growing popularity of cookery programmes and celebrity chefs is thought to be a factor in the boom.

However, the impact of the smoking ban, the influx of migrants from eastern Europe and diners' changing habits are also said to be partly responsible.

Some experts are warning that the growth in restaurants and cafs is masking the demise of the traditional pub.

Donald Reid, the editor of the guide, said: "The number of new openings over the last year is proof Edinburgh and Glasgow have two of the most dynamic dining scenes outside London.

"When we first published the guide 15 years ago we had more than 400 entries, but it's gone up to over 850 now. In the last year alone we've seen something like ten openings a month."

He added: "The majority of the new arrivals are independents, which gives them a local identity, and restaurants are increasingly recognising the value of local, seasonal and identifiable food.

"Edinburgh, in particular, has been developing very well on the fine-dining front, with several Michelin-starred restaurants, and that reputation is obviously filtering down to visitors.

"A number of the openings are second or third branches of local operations that have been quietly successful over the years. There's much less pressure from the chains in Edinburgh and Glasgow."

Alan Goldie, a director at property agency Christie & Co, said: "The List guide shows how much organic growth there has been of established businesses. People are definitely eating out more, and a lot of it's being driven by the popularity of programmes like Hell's Kitchen.

"There's also a lot of reinvention going on to accommodate changing tastes for more ethnic cuisine and the growing popularity of caf-bars."

A spokeswoman for the Glasgow City Marketing Bureau said: "There's always going to be a percentage of restaurants that change hands or reinvent themselves, but the encouraging thing is that new eateries are opening up in places where there has been none before.

"Every nook and cranny is being explored as a potential caf, deli or restaurant, and people are being very creative in their bids to differentiate themselves from the competition."

However, Colin Wilkinson, the spokesman for the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, said: "Recent research has shown that some 350 pubs have closed since the smoking ban."

Mr Wilkinson added: "There will have been a variety of reasons, and some may have reopened, but we're definitely seeing a move away from the more traditional pubs."