Beefeater is a chain of over 140 pub restaurants in the United Kingdom, owned by Whitbread.[1]
The chain's name references both the English figure of the beefeater and its menu's meat (particularly beef) offering. The chain is positioned slightly upmarket of Whitbread's Brewers Fayre chain.
History
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 around the west of London for example the Ock Mill in Abingdon, and the Crossbush in Arundel, were converted to "Out and Out".