Marco turns the heat on salt – For more hospitality stories, see what the weekend papers say

Marco turns the heat on salt
Celebrity chef Marco Pierre White has turned his attention from TV's Hell's KitchenRead the full article in the Sunday Express >>

Pub report triggers fury and libel claims Pub industry players have reacted with fury over last week's report by the House of Commons Business and Enterprise Committee, accusing ministers of libel and subverting parliamentary process. James Dickson, chief executive of Brulines which supplies drinks-dispensing monitoring equipment to 95% of pubs, described as "irresponsible" and "scandalous" the Committee's queries about the accuracy of the Brulines equipment. Dickson said he was planning libel action until he realised the MPs were protected by parliamentary privilege. Enterprise Inns' and Punch Taverns' bosses Ted Tuppen and Giles Thorley was also incensed at accusations they had made assertions that ‘on investigation, proved to give a partial picture, or on one occasion were positively false'. Tuppen said, "Without parliamentary privilege, we would be considering action." The Commission also angered the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) by calling for an investigation by the Competition Commission, which normally looks at cases after they have been referred by the OFT. - 17 May, Read the full article in the Mail on Sunday >>

Hutton Collins is Carluccio's mystery suitor
Investment firm Hutton Collins has emerged as the mystery bidder for Carluccio's, the 40-strong restaurant chain that was founded in 1991 by Italian chef Antonio Carluccio. Hutton Collins, which has backed Pizza Express and Loch Fyne in the past, has been working on plans to take the AIM-listed Carluccio's private for several weeks. Carluccio's shares have risen by more than 20% on the news of a bid to 97p, which values the group at £55.7m and is just above the price achieved at its 2005 flotation. Carluccio's is expected to announce a fall in half-year profits on Tuesday, to £2.1m from £2.7m last year. - 17 May, Read the full article in the Sunday Times >>

Ramsay protégé launches cook book for moods Gordon Ramsay protégé Ravinder Bhogal - who won his search for the next Fanny Cradock two years ago and has since described herself as "Gordon's new Fanny" - has launched a book, Cook in Boots, of recipes to suit women's many moods. "We're emotional creatures. We need food that fits the way we feel as much as our lifestyle," explained Bhogal. The book includes chapters on hangover food, social grazing and hard-up food, along with a chapter on chocolate called PMT, and another called Fork Me, Spoon Me: The Food of Love. - 17 May, Read the full article in the Sunday Times

Crimestoppers to reconstruct last steps of missing chefCrimestoppers will broadcast a reconstruction next month of the last known movements of missing chef Claudia Lawrence, who vanished after walking home from her shift at York University two months ago on 18 March. Police suspect that the 35-year-old may have been abducted and murdered by someone she knew. The reconstruction will include a reported sighting of a woman who may have been Lawrence at 5.35am on 19 March on Melrosegate Bridge, which lies on her route to work. She was seen there with a man who was about 5ft 6in tall, skinny, and wearing a dark-coloured hooded top and dark combat trousers. Anyone with information should contact the police on 0845 606 0247 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. - 17th May, Read the full article in the Mail on Sunday >>

English wines on the rise
English wines - which have long been treated as a joke - are coming into their own. Last week, English-grown wines scooped a record 24 medals at the 26th International Wine Challenge, with the Cornish Camel Valley Bacchus 2007 taking gold, while two English sparkling wines took top prizes at the Decanter World Wine Awards the week before. Although small - the UK's 400 vineyards produced three million bottles last year, less than 0.25% of France's output - the UK industry is the only one in Europe to be expanding as the Continent faces a ban on new plantings. As a result, several large French Champagne houses, including Taittinger and Veuve Clicquot, are seeking new planting land in southern England. - 17 May, Read the full article in the Sunday Telegraph >>

By Angela Frewin

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