Scuffell's Tutto!! leaves Heathrow

By David Shrimpton

CHEF-patron Stephen Scuffell has pulled out of the Forte Crest hotel, Heathrow, where he has operated the 120-seat Tutto!! restaurant for more than three years.

The restaurant, which turned over £625,000 annually, closed its doors on New Year's Day.

Scuffell said he had decided to withdraw for several reasons. He was unhappy that Forte had recently opened a fourth restaurant at the hotel and he wanted to ensure that each Tutto!! restaurant remained small.

Since starting at Heathrow, he has opened two more outlets, in Chiswick, west London, and Sunningdale, Surrey, each with 35 seats.

The Sunningdale branch has proved particularly successful, currently turning over some £250,000 a year, against initial projections of £150,000.

One difficulty at Heathrow was that Scuffell felt he was forced to charge too much. "The smaller restaurants are based on serving good quality food at reasonable prices," he said. "At Heathrow, you have to come into line with what Forte charges, and then there are the overhead costs.

"I have much more control over the smaller restaurants," he added. "However good other people are, it's not the same as running it yourself."

Further uncertainty for Scuffell was caused by plans to rebrand the Forte Crest as a Méridien next year. "That was unsettling for me because I didn't know where my future was," he said.

Forte declined to comment on Scuffell's withdrawal, but said that new manager Christopher Rawstron, who started last week, wanted a replacement restaurant in by February. This could either be run in-house or franchised.

Scuffell plans to look for a third outlet this summer.