Michelin Star chef hits crowdfunding target for new restaurant in 8 days

⁣After launching a campaign on crowdfunding website Kickstarter, North Devon based chef
Thomas Carr has reached his target after just 8 days. The new restaurant will now open in
Ilfracombe, named Thomas Carr Seafood & Grill, and join Thomas’ fine dining restaurant
‘Thomas Carr at the Olive Room’ in the North Devon town.

Recruitment campaigns and work have now started to open the new venue, in the old Lamb
Hotel building on Ilfracombe’s High Street. With a launch event to take place on March 15th.

‘’We hope to be able to get partly open during February, then build up to a full launch with the
event on March 15th’’ said Thomas, ‘’We’ve been blown away by all the support we’ve received.
Not just in the money raised, but also the kind words and support’’. A target of £15,000 was set
and reached, with funds raised now at £17,990. ‘’We don’t want to stop here, the reality of a
new venture like this is it needs a fair amount to get everything up and running. We’re now all
set to open, but to do things the way we’d really like to do them, we want to keep that total
rising’’

In order to keep attracting more backers, the team behind the project have added more
‘rewards’ for backers to choose. Backer’s can choose to pledge anything from £10 - which will
get your name printed on the restaurant’s planned ‘wall of fame’ right up to £8000 - if you’d like
Thomas to cater an event or wedding for 50 guests. The campaign ends on January 27th 2018.

‘’Crowdfunding this way is a win/win scenario all round’’ continued Thomas, ‘’We’ll get well
needed funds towards getting things off the ground, but the backers have all backed rewards
they know are really good value, such as meals at the restaurants and even dinner parties in
their own homes’’. Thomas will be visiting 5 different homes to cook meals for backers and their
guests.

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall and restrict access – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 12 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 500,000 followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.