Loungers launches new roadside brand

All-day café-bar and restaurant brand Loungers has launched Brightside, a new roadside restaurant concept.

The group, which is behind the Lounge and Cosy Club brands, hopes to reinvigorate roadside dining in the UK and has acquired three sites, the first of which is set to open on the A38, south of Exeter, in February 2023.

Further sites will open on the A303 near Honiton and on the A38 near Saltash in spring, and Loungers has plans to roll out Brightside to all corners of the UK in the coming years. It believes sites will mainly be situated on A-roads.

Brightside will offer a freshly-cooked menu full of classic, comfort food-style dishes - including an extensive brunch menu, as well as burgers, pizzas and a children's menu - in nostalgic surroundings. 

Brightside will serve a menu packed with comfort food classics, Loungers says 

Alex Reilley, founder chairman of Loungers, says: "We’ve had the itch for a while now to create a roadside restaurant concept that’s fit-for-purpose in the 21st century. For many people, the highlight of childhood road trips in days gone by was a stop at the likes of Little Chef. We believe there is a gap in the market for a fresh concept that gives customers the option to take a proper break and enjoy wholesome food and great hospitality, in a landscape that is currently dominated by drive-thru and QSR formats. 

“Brightside will have a contemporary, welcoming and warm feel, while also evoking nostalgia for a time when motoring in the UK was a more exciting experience. We want it to be an integral part of our customers’ journey-planning, and something both adults and children alike look forward to. 

"We believe that Brightside will really shake up what has become an uninspiring sector and that there is potential to roll out Brightside across the UK in the coming years. Our expertise in high quality, great value all-day dining, developed through Lounge and Cosy Club, gives us confidence that Brightside can bring proper hospitality back to roadside dining across the UK.”    

Loungers currently operates 175 Lounges and 35 Cosy Club venues around the UK. The group recently announced it was accelerating its site roll-out programme, targeting 30 new openings in the current financial year and between 32 and 34 on an ongoing basis. 

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