City centre restaurant to temporarily close to undergo transformation
Francis Redwood
Bella Italia in Norwich has been covered in scaffolding - Credit: Norwich
A city restaurant will be out of action from the beginning of next week as it undergoes a top-to-bottom renovation.
Customers will have to bid Bella Italia arrivederci from Monday as the brand will shut its Red Lion Street outlet for a couple of weeks.
However, bosses confirmed the Italian chain will reopen to visitors from early February.
A spokesman for the brand said: “Our Red Lion Street restaurant will be closed from Monday, January 17 while it undergoes a full refurbishment.
Builders are working on the outside of the Red Lion Street restaurant - Credit: Archant
"We’re excited to reveal the new design when we reopen in early February."
He added: "To enjoy our menu of Italian classics in the meantime, head to Bella Italia at Riverside Norwich, where our team will offer a warm welcome and friendly service while you share food, friendship and laughter with your friends and family.”
Managers added that the restaurant - famed for its pizza and pasta dishes - will return with a new ambiance both inside and outside.
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Builders were seen working in Red Lion Street this week with scaffolding put up so that they can access the signage above the restaurant.
This is the first stage of the renovation before the interior work is completed.
The facelift comes as restaurants across the country bid to entice diners back indoors.
The hospitality industry has been decimated by Covid and numerous lockdowns over the past 18 months with people instead choosing to have their dinners delivered to the doorstep.
As a result fast food delivery giant Just Eat saw orders jump by a third during the pandemic.
Where restaurant tables were gathering dust the Deliveroo competitor instead saw orders topping £1.1billion last year.
Jitse Groen, chief executive of Just Eat Takeaway.com, said: “Following the merger of Just Eat and Takeaway.com nearly two years ago, we made significant investments and the company is now six times bigger in terms of orders.”
He added the group “markedly improved” its underlying earnings over the second half of the year and will “make further improvements this year”.
