Food firm clinches £3.5m deal with BBQ restaurant Hickory’s

The announcement was made at Hickory’s newest restaurant in Shrewsbury and follows news that Harlech Foodservice, based in Criccieth, in Gwynedd, and Chester, had created 16 new jobs after achieving record sales over the summer.

Hickory’s has 11 restaurants including at Wall Heath in Dudley and Shrewsbury where it opened last year and where it employs 70 staff.

Harlech Foodservice is now delivering the meat for its burgers, pork ribs, chicken wings, butt steaks and brisket, including over a ton of beef every month

Since lockdown ended in July, Hickory’s has welcomed thousands of guests across its restaurants and was boosted by the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Rob Bacon, executive chef director who helped set up Hickory’s in Chester 10 years ago, said: “Guests have welcomed the reopening of the restaurants and being able to enjoy their BBQ favourites and smokehouse classics again.

“We have been looking for a supplier to help us grow the business and Harlech Foodservices have been on our radar for a while and they fitted the bill. We need the right quality of meat and Harlech can supply that.

“They can also take orders late at night and it will be here at our restaurant, whether it’s in Southport, Worcester or Rhos on Sea, at 10am the next morning with the right product at the right quality.

“We cook our beef brisket for 16 hours in the smoker so the beef needs to be grain-fed rather than grass-fed because the meat will stay moist and tender rather than drying out.”

Mark Lawton, commercial director of Harlech Foodservice, said: “Hickory’s are a fantastic brand and they’ve done a lot of work to get their offer just right and it’s paying off for them.

“Part of that is making sure they have the right meat when and where they need it and we have the capacity to guarantee that. We’ve got the size and scale to deliver six days a week and cater for late ordering using our online ordering and app.

“They have struck a chord with their customers and that’s shown by their success but they don’t compromise on quality and their approach to doing what they do is very thorough and professional.”