Steven Hesketh

There is something slightly unhinged about taking on a festival that has been happening for 25 years (which wasn’t renewing for year 26 due to the current climate)   - and then pulling it all together in 10 weeks! That was basically my life for the last few weeks. Last weekend, we organised our first Food and Drink Festival: the Cheshire and North Wales Food and Drink Festival. And not just any event, but one with history behind it, a loyal audience, traders depending on it, and all the...

This week I went to Gail’s for a hot cross bun, heard they were the best so I had to go and try them. I went around 2:30pm for my lunch as I saw they were open until 6pm online . However arrived and asked for my hot cross bun and was told the kitchen had closed at 2pm. I was gutted. And yes, I know in the grand scheme of life this is not exactly a crisis. But it did get me thinking about something hospitality does all the time, often without even realising it: places are technically open,...

News that The Chester Grosvenor will close later this year has been massive news in Chester this past week. This is another chapter in the life of one of Chester’s most iconic buildings. The hotel is expected to return after major refurbishment works. We just do not know when yet. And for a building like this, there is plenty of story to tell in the meantime. The Chester Grosvenor is not just a hotel people know. It’s famous. Sitting right in the heart of the city on Eastgate Street, beside...