Pret A Manger founder vows to tackle ‘American giants of terrible fast food’ with relaunch of its Asian chain Itsu
The founder of Pret A Manger has vowed to take on the “American giants of terrible fast food” with the relaunch of his Asian restaurant chain Itsu.
Julian Metcalfe has spent money making Itsu a healthy convenience food chain and — in line with the home cooking trend — a number of sites will now use steam cookers to cook everything from bao buns to dumplings and whole-grain brown rice.
Tasty: A number of Itsu locations will now use steamers to prepare everything from bao buns to dumplings and whole-grain brown rice.
The 63-year-old restaurateur, who founded Itsu in Chelsea in 1997, said: ‘It’s about the goal of being able to sell food that is nutritious at a price people can afford.
‘For £3.50 you eat like an emperor.
“When you come in, you’re not bombarded by huge buckets of chips and huge processed meats. We want to offer a huge range of prices with a radically new menu and equipment to combat the dire problems of food inflation and high staff costs.
‘Reinvention and innovation are being forced upon British companies like never before.’