Flamboyant TV chef Gino D’Acampo has spoken out against the rebrand of his Harrogate restaurant to Piccolino, claiming it was done against his wishes.
This month five restaurants with the Gino D’Acampo My Restaurant name were rebranded by owner Individual Restaurants, including on Parliament Street in Harrogate.
Piccolino is also owned by the same group.
But in an interview with Manchester Evening News to promote a new restaurant in Cheshire, D’Acampo said they were rebranded “without my consent”:
“My dad used to say to me for every action there is a reaction. Those five restaurants, they were rebranded without my consent and this is my reaction, I open new ones.
“When one goes, I say let’s do something bigger and better.”
Read more:
- Gino D’Acampo restaurant in Harrogate set to close
- New bar and nightclub to open on Harrogate’s Parliament Street
The Restaurant Bar & Grill, which was on the site before Gino’s, is also owned by Individual Restaurants.
Press reports from last year said the Gino D’Acampo My Restaurant chain was struggling financially.
The Stray Ferret asked Individual Restaurants to respond to D’Acampo’s claim but we did not receive a response at the time of publication.
D’Acampo’s Harrogate venture got off on the wrong foot when the chef pronounced it was the only “proper Italian” in Harrogate.
His comments sparked a furious backlash at the time from a number of Harrogate’s Italian restaurant owners.