Brightside Roadside
| Locations: | 2 services |
| Related names: | Loungers |
| Introduced: | 2023 |
| Predecessors: | Route Restaurants |
| See also: | OK Diner, Little Chef, Happy Eater |
Brightside Roadside is a new chain of roadside restaurants which launched in February 2023.
The new offering claims it will operate on a similar business model to the early days of Little Chef and Happy Eater, which were both big inspirations for its chairman, Alex Reilley. A large number of sites are planned, each with a very similar style and an '80s vibe.
The chairman called the focus on long-form dining "a risk", but hopes families and holidaymakers will appreciate the "genuine hospitality", with a menu of 'Early Riser' breakfasts, brunch, burgers, pizza and kids' food, against a backdrop of "tired and uninspiring" competition from most other roadside food offers. In fact, Brightside, will be the UK's only major roadside restaurant chain (other than the comparatively small OK Diner) - a market which would have been hotly competitive until the late 1990s.
Loungers acquired most Route Restaurants, a small chain that operated near trunk roads in Devon and Cornwall, in November 2022, to help them kick off the chain. The first Brightside opened at Winning Post on 10 February 2023, with a branch opening near Saltash on 7 June 2023 and Honiton, the final of the three former Route Restaurants, opening on 3 August 2023.
Loungers later announced a new-build site had been acquired at the rebuilt Ram Jam services on the A1, while other acquired sites will be largely re-built. Following delays to the redevelopment of the Devon and Cornwall sites, progress on any further Brightside restaurants has been delayed, with Ram Jam opening on 22 November 2024.
A week before the launch of the Ram Jam restaurant, on 14 November 2024, a new Brightside 'Speedy Menu' was launched to cater for those in a rush. This includes items which require a short cook time as well as a selection of new sandwiches, holding similar parallels with Little Chef Express.
Locations
Brightside currently operate at one signposted service area: [Download KMLrefine search]
- Ram Jam (A1) (northbound only)
- Winning Post (A38) (northbound only)
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