Birmingham’s Lasan Group expands again
Birmingham’s Lasan Group is expanding with the launch of a venue in Leicester city centre.
The restaurant group has taken a lease at 4 St Martin’s – a Grade II listed former bank that stands on the corner of Grey Friars, next to the Richard III Visitor Centre.
The group’s flagship Indian restaurant in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter was named Best Local Restaurant in the UK by Gordon Ramsay and praised by Take That singer Gary Barlow.
The group also runs Indian street food café Raja Monkey in Hall Green and two Argentinian steak restaurants under the brand Fiesta Del Asado in Edgbaston and Solihull.
The Leicester restaurant is due to open later this year creating 40 jobs.
It will be an off-shoot of Fiesta Del Asado and called Sonrisa, which group founder Jabbar Khan believes will be more suited to the location.
He said: “We love the cool and quirky feel of St Martins and its wide range of independents, which is a perfect fit for the Sonrisa concept – a Latin cocktail bar and restaurant with bustling atmosphere and full-flavoured food. It’s Argentinean-style eating with rustic small plates of meat, seafood and vegetables served throughout the day.
“We saw a number of properties but 4 St Martins stood out for its character, size and position and our planned re-fit will only enhance what is already there.
“I’m really optimistic about the future and excited to launch this new venture.”
Joe Reilly, associate director at Innes England who arranged the property deal, said: “Although these are challenging times, it has been a pleasure to work with all parties, who have made every effort to ensure the transaction completed successfully in the midst of local lockdown.
“This is a first-class building and would serve many uses well, so to get one of Birmingham’s best-known culinary teams signed up as tenants proves the faith in the market here. The Lasan Group is an established bar and restaurant operator with a track record of success over almost two decades and we look forward to welcoming them to Leicester.”
Webinar: Thursday, August 27, 12pm-1pm
As the rest of the UK emerged from lockdown at the end of June, Leicester’s businesses remained under localised restrictions, leaving them at a disadvantage compared to their regional and national counterparts.
During this exclusive online event, we’ll discover how Leicester’s businesses have continued to trade under lockdown conditions.
Our expert panel of local business owners and finance specialists will discuss how the city’s professionals supported each other, highlight the success stories and challenges the extended lockdown has thrown up and offer advice to business owners in other parts of the UK which is already – or could at some point in the future – be faced with the same localised restrictions.
Our panel includes:
– Kamal Dhutia, director, BI Limited
– Tony Reynolds, head of business banking, East Midlands, Barclays
– Byron Dixon, founder and CEO, Micro-Fresh
– Kevin Harris, partner, RSM and chair of Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership
To register, visit https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/2915973307910/WN_lPEuq3l_TlKQK5sSbAUE2w
