Page 24 of 77

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 1:27 pm
by Preezy
Would not be surprised at all to see Pizza Express go under, all of these high street restaurant chains are slowly dying thanks to people eating out less. The rise of Deliveroo (Hi Ad :) ) and other delivery services is also a major contributor. You'd think that Pizza Express loves being able to sell more gooseberry fool to people that can't be arsed to go to the restaurant, but they're missing out on the far more lucrative drinks side of the dining experience where they make a big chunk of their margin. Plus, as others have said, there are far better options out there for people that do actually want to eat out.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 1:39 pm
by Lex-Man
Preezy wrote:Would not be surprised at all to see Pizza Express go under, all of these high street restaurant chains are slowly dying thanks to people eating out less. The rise of Deliveroo (Hi Ad :) ) and other delivery services is also a major contributor. You'd think that Pizza Express loves being able to sell more gooseberry fool to people that can't be arsed to go to the restaurant, but they're missing out on the far more lucrative drinks side of the dining experience where they make a big chunk of their margin. Plus, as others have said, there are far better options out there for people that do actually want to eat out.


Don't Deliveroo deliver Pizza Express anyway?

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 1:48 pm
by Victor Mildew
I do, but I mainly deliver from local kebab shops.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 2:14 pm
by Preezy
Lex-Man wrote:
Preezy wrote:Would not be surprised at all to see Pizza Express go under, all of these high street restaurant chains are slowly dying thanks to people eating out less. The rise of Deliveroo (Hi Ad :) ) and other delivery services is also a major contributor. You'd think that Pizza Express loves being able to sell more gooseberry fool to people that can't be arsed to go to the restaurant, but they're missing out on the far more lucrative drinks side of the dining experience where they make a big chunk of their margin. Plus, as others have said, there are far better options out there for people that do actually want to eat out.


Don't Deliveroo deliver Pizza Express anyway?

They do, but my point is that whilst you'd think this is good for business, it's actually bad for business as they don't make as much money per customer than they would if they were sat in the restaurant.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 7:49 pm
by Errkal
KK wrote:I don't think I've ever seen an empty Pizza Express in the evenings, and their supermarket range (a facsimile of their restaurant products...apart from rather ironically the actual pizzas themselves, which are average copies at best) is everywhere. Surely this is another case of management being inept.


Yeah they are always busy and their branded stuff is everywhere, as you say it has to gooseberry fool management and directors taking way way too much money for themselves.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 8:57 pm
by Victor Mildew
Funnily enough, i opened a pizza express pizza tonight and a 40% off restaurant voucher fell out. It's like they don't want to make any money.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Mon Oct 07, 2019 9:15 pm
by Return_of_the_STAR
The problem with pizza express is that their parent company have overloaded them with debt. The actual business is financially sound.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2019 10:13 pm
by Lex-Man
I went to pizza express tonight. Felt I had to for old times sake, I remember going whenever my parents had a birthday party. Had my classic order and to be honest, I think it's fine but really nothing special. That said the Southend branch was surprisingly busy and the staff were very good.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2019 10:31 pm
by Victor Mildew
It was always pizza hut for birthdays when I was younger, but then pizza express didn't exist back then.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2019 11:08 pm
by Choclet-Milk
Frankie & Benny's was a birthday staple in my house, until they ruined it with an awful new menu, and then hammered the nails in with an even newer, even awful-er menu.

The last few times I went to the Trafford Centre one, there couldn't have been more than ten tables full, and that's dinner time on weekends. Wouldn't be surprised to see them go, tbh. Absolute state of them nowadays. :dread:

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 8:10 am
by Lagamorph
The Frankie & Benny's nearest to me got shut down for achieving a 0 star hygiene rating.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 9:09 am
by Jenuall
Haven't been to a Frankie & Benny's for a good 5 years or so, it was never brilliant but it did a decent enough job from what I recall.

Being good enough used to be enough for you to survive in the market but I think those days are long gone now.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 9:26 am
by KK
TGI Friday’s has also gone downhill. Was the first place I ever had a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 7:44 pm
by Lex-Man
I thought Frankie and Benny's had closed down.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 9:35 pm
by Godzilla
As has already been said they ruined it with the 2 menu revamps. They used to do a lovely BBQ chicken pizza, they then decided to re do the menu and make such delights as a calzone pizza with Mac and cheese and pulled pork inside.... Sounds amazing, but looked and tasted like death.

Had a Google.... This is what it looked like....


...


Image

...


They are so expensive for what is basically fast food, served slowly in a kid friendly environment.

Also their brownie ice cream sundaes were crap as the spoons weren't long enought to reach the bottom of the glass.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2019 7:03 am
by Preezy
Godzilla wrote:They used to do a lovely BBQ chicken pizza

No-one has ever created a lovely BBQ chicken pizza.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2019 10:02 am
by Lex-Man
Preezy wrote:
Godzilla wrote:They used to do a lovely BBQ chicken pizza

No-one has ever created a lovely BBQ chicken pizza.


Chicken on pizza is always a bad option. IMO.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2019 2:01 pm
by Gemini73
Frankie & Benny's here in Cheltenham is awful. Took the kids there a year or so back and everything from the service to the food itself was dire. Place was quiet but still took an age to get our order and when it arrived the kids pasta was stodgy, bland rubbish and my pizza base wasn't cooked through. Haven't been back since.

Pizza Hut on the way to Gloucester is far better. Always good, friendly service and the food is top notch with new stuff regularly being added to the menu. Tried their chicken, pepperoni and cheese melt last time we went. Delicious.

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2019 1:20 pm
by Gemini73
"High Street woes mount as 85,000 jobs feared lost"

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co ... s-50158169

Re: The Retail Apocalypse (Incorporating Casual Dining Closures)

Posted: Sun Nov 03, 2019 10:55 pm
by Hexx