14 BUSINESS
Picardy possibilities
By PHYLLIS STEPHENTHE NEWEST RESTAURANT in
the New Town, is Under the Table
opened by chef Sean Clark who set
up the fine dining restaurant The
Table just upstairs, with his
business partner, former wine
merchant, Paul O’Donoghue.
As well as the champagne and
canapés at the opening party, the
star guest of the night was Joe
Russo, the Marvel director who has
invested in the new venture after
being so impressed with Sean’s
food while filming in Edinburgh.
The restaurant will offer a fixed
price lunch and à la carte dinner
with seasonal changes in a more
relaxed bistro atmosphere than therestaurant upstairs.
The promise is that this will be
“an ingredient-focussed restaurant
with strong links and references to
classic European cuisine, taking
inspiration from the Bouchon’s and
Osteria’s of France and Italy that we
love, where wine lives front and
centre and warm hospitality is ever
present”.
Each dish on the menu will be a
celebration of carefully considered
local and seasonal produce and
will change often to ensure
customers are experiencing only
the best ingredients sourced from
the restaurant’s carefully curated
local suppliers.underthetable.ukTable service in the New Town
By BUSINESS REPORTER
A LISTED GEORGIAN BUILDING is up for
sale with development possibilities to convert it
into a luxury hotel.
CBRE is marketing 10 Picardy Place for sale,
subject to planning permission, to transform it
into a 51-bedroom apartment hotel.
Formerly the Hertz car rental office, plans for
a new hotel include en-suite rooms, ranging in
size from 19 to 26 square metres, a courtyard
area and reception.
Picardy Place is just a five minute walk from
Princes Street with views up to Calton Hill. It is
also conveniently located for Edinburgh
Waverley train station and there is a tram stop
right outside taking passengers either way to
Edinburgh Airport and Newhaven.
Chris Dougray, Executive Director at CBRE,
said: “This is a rare chance to secure a
consented freehold site in one of the best
locations in Edinburgh, one of Europe’s most
sought after tourist destinations. It’s the perfect
place to stay for those going on shopping or
theatre breaks, close to the restaurants and bars
of Broughton Street, Edinburgh Playhouse
Theatre and the St James Quarter.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for a hotelier or
hotel group to transform an empty building
dating back to the 1800s into a beautiful hotel
and revive the historic Georgian frontage,
which would not only add to the visual appeal
of the area, but also create new jobs and attract
tourists.
“Edinburgh is one of the UK’s strongest
performing hotel markets, attracting 1.
million overnight stays in 2022, with strong
growth in the average daily rate (ADR)
achieved in the last 24 months. Now is a greattime to invest in a new hotel in the city as there
are very few development sites of this quality
remaining.”
Dougray added that it is envisaged that a
decision on planning permission will be made
by The City of Edinburgh Council before
summer.By PHYLLIS STEPHEN
UNITY TRUST BANK, set up by
the trade union movement which
celebrates its 40th anniversary this
year, has announced the
promotion of Scott Hutchinson,
who joined in 2019, to Deputy
Regional Director, alongside the
appointment of two new
Relationship Managers to its
Scotland team, Jordan Hady and
Michelle Wilson reinforcing the
bank’s commitment to supporting
and expanding its growing
customer base in the country.
Michelle and Scott will work from
the Edinburgh hub.
Mark Smith, Relationship
Manager at Unity Trust Bank, said:
“Since joining Unity in 2016, it has
been fantastic to see the continuedinvestment in our team as we strive
to deliver outstanding service to
our expanding regional customer
base.”Pictured: (L-R) Mark Smith,
Relationship Manager; Michelle
Wilson, Relationship Manager; Scott
Hutchinson, Deputy Regional
Director; Jordan Hady, Relationship
Manager at Unity Trust BankPromotions at Unity Trust Bank
Open evening
at Cramond
By BUSINESS REPORTERAN EDINBURGH CARE HOME is holding
an open day when members of the public
are invited to come and experience a tour.
Dementia care experts, Cramond
Residence is urging members of the public
looking at care facilities to come and view
its facilities between 4-8pm on 2 May.
Guests will be led by professionals to
learn more about the benefits of the
home, its unique care packages, as well as
learning more about how Cramond
Residence Tailors care provision for each
individual resident.
Client Liaison Manager Christian Daraio
said: “It’s always great to welcome new
people into our home and our open day
offers an opportunity for those exploring
care for a loved one to come and view our
brilliant facilities and get a feel for what
makes Cramond Residence unique.”Martin P McAdamJoe Russo and Sean Clark