Blunos moves to Bath

Award-winning chef Martin Blunos and his wife Siân have sold their two-Michelin-starred restaurant Lettonie in Bristol and moved to Bath.

The couple have bought Newbridge House, a listed Georgian building which was once a hotel, and are converting it into a 40-seat restaurant with five letting rooms. They hope to reopen in mid-November.

"It's 300 times better than before," said Mrs Blunos. "The old restaurant was too small for us; we were having to turn too many people away."

The previous property, tucked between a veterinary surgery and a dress shop in a suburban shopping parade, was first put up for sale in November 1995 through Christie & Co, for £195,000.

It was put back on the market for £185,000 in March this year, through Charter & Co, which also negotiated the purchase of Newbridge House. Mrs Blunos declined to reveal the eventual sale price.

Lettonie's six staff will move with it to Bath and as many as six more could be taken on. The menu will remain largely unchanged - French with a few Latvian specialities - and average spend will stay at around £55 a head, including wine.

The restaurant will continue to be called Lettonie, which is the French name for Latvia.