Beefeater (restaurant)

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Beefeater was set up by the then Whitbread Brewery in 1974 with the opening of its first restaurant, The Halfway House, in Enfield. The premise was for simple food, such as prawn cocktails and char-grilled steaks, and was seen as a rival to Berni Inns. Beefeater expanded over the next 20 years, including rival Berni Inns in 1995,^[2] before the chain experienced difficulties in the 1990s.

During the 1990s the flagging brand tried a number of strategies to boost sales. A small number of sites (mainly on the outskirts of London) were converted into “Out & Out”. For example: the Ock Mill in Abingdon, the Crossbush in Arundel, and Coombe Lodge near Croydon. This was unsuccessful and they were rebranded back to Beefeater in 2005. Also a few sites became "Grillbars", but these were soon sold. A "Banter" was launched at the Roundabout Beefeater in Reading, which has since been demolished after it failed. Brian Turner was recruited to advise on the remaining Beefeaters, and his signature dishes and face were featured on the menu. As the brand declined further, a number of sites, such as "The Cotton Mill" in Kilmarnock and "Craig House" near Inveresk, were rebranded as Brewers Fayre, while others were sold, like the Carpenters Arms in Botley, Oxford, now a McDonald's.

In the early 2000s, the parent company Whitbread invested millions of pounds refurbishing almost all of its Beefeater outlets in a project known internally as "B2". This involved the complete refurbishment of the restaurants from scratch, retaining nothing of the existing fittings and design. The refurbished restaurants, described by the parent company as "warm, modern and stylish", have been mostly successful and embraced by customers. Main changes included chargrills in all outlets, and many have open plan grill areas so customers can see their meals being prepared. In 2006, Whitbread divested the majority of its standalone Beefeater and Brewers Fayre sites (excluding those with a Premier Inn) to market rival Mitchells & Butlers,^[3] who re-branded them to their own formats (mainly Harvester and Toby Carvery). Whitbread's refurbishment programme was completed in 2008; the last site was the Woolpack outside Ashford in Kent.

2008 saw the Pemberton Beefeater built in Llanelli which was the first new site to open since before 2000. Since then new sites have been built alongside new Premier Inn hotels in locations such as Burgess Hill and Stirling. The same year, 10 Brewers Fayre sites such as "The Millfield" in York were converted to Beefeater. In July, Mitchells & Butlers acquired 44 additional standalone Beefeater and Brewers Fayre pubs, such as the Park Place in Mitcham, in exchange for 21 Express by Holiday Inn hotels.

In late 2009, the brand became known as Beefeater Grill. In 2013 a new look was introduced, returning the name to Beefeater. The company introduced a new logo featuring a stylised cow in 2015.^{[citation needed]}

In February 2016, Beefeater opened a new restaurant concept in Birmingham, titled "Bar + Block," bringing Beefeater to the high streets of Britain.^[4]

In April 2024, it was announced that 112 restaurants would close, with the space being converted into “more profitable” Premier Inn hotel rooms. 126 of Whitbread’s “less profitable” restaurants would also be put up for sale, axing around 1500 jobs.^[5] Batches of restaurants were sold off over a 2 year period, with at least 15 (such as Coombe Lodge, Croydon) being bought by the Papa’s Group^[6], re-opening as a poorly-performing JD Wetherspoons pub as part of a franchise agreement.^{[7] [8]}

In May 2026 Whitbread announced the eventual closure of all 197 of their remaining restaurants (including Beefeater, Brewer’s Fayre and Bar + Block), with the loss of around 3800 jobs.^[9]

Beefeater restaurants are located throughout mainland Britain from Inverness's "Loch Ness House" to Plymouth's "Marsh Mills". Most restaurants are located alongside major road junctions with a neighbouring Premier Inn, but a few are found in town and city centres. There are currently no Beefeater restaurants in Northern Ireland.

Their busiest sites included Malta Inn, Maidstone and Coombe Lodge, Croydon.