Hospitality venues across Sunderland have celebrated another successful Restaurant Week across the city – with the week-long event, which offers diners a variety of special deals at restaurants, cafés and bars delivering an estimated economic impact of £509,000.
A record 65 businesses took part in the event – which is organised twice per year by Sunderland’s BIDs – with diners downloading 16,997 vouchers to take advantage of the deals on offer.
Once again, Rumour Has It at Green Terrace proved the most popular choice, with Signatures Italian at New Silksworth, and Asiana based at the Echo 24 building taking up second and third place. Koji, Wild Fire, Tarantinos Steak Seafood restaurant, Vitos Osteria at the Sheepfold Stables, Babaji, North and Rio Brazilian Steakhouse were also among the top 10 most popular venues.
Wild Fire co-owner Josh Wild said: “Restaurant Week was great exposure for us. It gave people who might not have visited us the incentive to do so, and it gave our regular customers the chance to enjoy some great deals. It was a positive experience all round. We loved taking part and look forward to doing it again next year.”
David Turton, marketing manager at Nexus – which supported the event – said: “Sunderland’s food scene is thriving, and there’s never been a better time to explore it. With fast, frequent and convenient services, Tyne and Wear Metro is your ticket to discovering the amazing restaurants across the city and we’re proud to once again support this great initiative.”
Roberta Redecke, head of business services at Sunderland’s BIDs, said: “Over the past few years, Sunderland has very much become a destination for food lovers thanks to the variety and standard of our restaurants and bars. The fact that this time round we had the largest number of participants we’ve ever had reflects the vibrancy of our hospitality scene. What is always particularly encouraging is the number of people who travel from outside the city to sample what we have to offer – and the reviews they give our venues are excellent.”
