Bill’s to open largest restaurant in 10 years after profits climb

Restaurant group Bill’s will open its latest site at London’s Westfield Stratford City next month, marking the brand’s largest restaurant launch in more than a decade.

The site will be its 49th and will serve 170 covers. It is due to open 4 March.

News of the launch follows Bill’s continued expansion into new formats as the brand prepares to celebrate its 25th anniversary this year. This includes its first airport location at Heathrow Terminal 2, featuring a ‘Bill’s on Board’ option that allows customers to take dishes onto their flight, as well as an all-day menu.

Writing on LinkedIn about the Heathrow launch, managing director Tom James said: “A lot of planning, creativity and excitement has gone into this project, matched by our incredible partners at Avolta… and now we can finally announce the first Bill’s restaurant’s airport location will be opening for guests in spring 2026.”

He added it is a “beautiful site, with an enhanced digital experience”, and that “this is a great new chapter in the brand’s growth journey!”.

Plans for expansion comes after a few rough years for the Richard Caring-backed restaurant group. In early 2023, it was announced via its financial accounts that it had closed 12 underperforming restaurants.

In its latest financial accounts to year ending 5 January 2025, it stated: “Since Bill’s has shed a number of poorly performing sites in recent years, core profitability has improved markedly.”

Over the past three years, Bill’s has grown profits significantly, with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation increasing from £7.5m in the year to 2 January 2022 to £11.3m in the year to 5 January 2025. The group has also delivered four consecutive years of both cover growth and like-for-like sales growth, underlining sustained momentum across the estate.

Bill’s was founded in 2001 by Bill Collison, in Lewes, East Sussex.