Whitbread PLC Closes Ten Essex Dining Venues to Shift Focus

Whitbread PLC, the parent company of Premier Inn, will close ten restaurants and pubs across Essex in September 2026. The closures affect the Beefeater, Brewers Fayre, Cookhouse + Pub, and Table Table brands. Table Table and Cookhouse + Pub locations are scheduled to close on September 3, followed by Brewers Fayre on September 7 and Beefeater on September 10. Impacted sites include venues in Basildon, Braintree, Clacton, Colchester, Dovercourt, Fobbing, Harlow, and Southend.

This action is part of a five-year strategy to transform the company into a pure-play hotel operation and save £250 million. The broader restructuring across the United Kingdom and Ireland involves 3,800 job cuts. To increase efficiency, the company intends to replace standalone branded dining with restaurants located inside Premier Inn hotels.

The company stated it looked at options to maximize value creation in response to significant cost increases, specifically citing national insurance and business rates.