Three business partners experienced in the hospitality sector have spoken of their hopes and plans for an artisan pizza restaurant in Dunbar.

Daniel Harrison, Nick Kourie and Emily Luke, who also own Pilgrim Bar in Edinburgh, have purchased Hector’s, a 40 seater restaurant, which includes takeaway and online delivery in its offering. Based at 32 A High Street, Dunbar, and with a core staff of fifteen people, it’s been part of the town’s dining scene since 2020.

With a good reputation amongst clientele for the quality of its food, taking on Hector’s additionally appealed to the three partners due to its showcasing of locally sourced produce, with the business using Mungoswell’s Malt & Milling as its flour supplier, along with meatballs exclusively made by Linton Butchers, and cheese from Doddington Dairy.

“We are excited to announce ourselves as the new owners of Hector’s, and see a great deal of untapped potential in the business,” said Daniel Harrison. “We had been looking for other business opportunities that fit our criteria, and came across Hector’s through our network of contacts. Emily and myself have a background in property and business development, with Nick bringing extensive experience in the leisure & hospitality sector as an operator of multiple food units, to the table.”

“We are all heavily involved in the business on a day to day level, and each bring our own specialisms to bear.”

Daniel went on to say that he, Nick and Emily liked that Hector’s had a structured management and staff team in place already, something they look for when taking on new hospitality businesses.

“We definitely felt there was untapped potential in Hector’s, and that we, with our skills and expertise, could upgrade and elevate the offering to the local community. It’s good that Hector’s already uses local suppliers, as this is an area we want to maximise.”

Within the short period of time since the trio took over, changes have been made, including an investment in new kitchen equipment, and the introduction of a new lunch menu, introducing a folded sandwich with three different offerings weekly. A new drinks menu has also been introduced, with carefully crafted cocktails, new draft beer options, and a new wine selection tailored to the food offering.

“Both the new food and drinks menus are still very new, and have only been implemented in the last few weeks,” said Daniel. “But already the sandwiches have become a very popular lunch time edition. We post weekly on our social media about the folded sandwiches of the week. Customers can keep up to date if they follow us on facebook or instagram.”

Daniel explained that sixty per cent of Hector’s trade comes from takeaway and online ordering.

“We offer sit in, take away, and we deliver locally using a local and trusted pool of drivers. We also have a collaboration with Station Yard pub in Dunbar, where we deliver pizza for their clientele,” he said.

“It’s good news to have such a following for our take away and delivery, but we are keen to boost sit in dining too, by building on the dine out experience,” he said. “It’s fantastic that Laura Macdonald, who was General Manager of the business under its previous ownership, has recently returned to head up front of house, as she is well known locally, with a lovely way with customers.”

Nick Kourie added his comments on summer trading, along with Hector’s potential for growth: “Everything is moving in the right direction”, he said. “We hope shortly to begin an upgrade of the restaurant interior. If the Dunbar public can continue to get behind the business, there is a great deal we can achieve. We would like to thank them for their loyal custom. Too many hospitality businesses have folded since the pandemic, and we certainly don’t want Hector’s to be one of them. We will continue to look at showcasing the artisan produce of the area.”

Commenting from Mungoswell’s Malt & Milling, Angus.. said: “We wish the new owners of Hector’s Pizzeria well in their ventures. It’s fantastic that they are investing in a business in Dunbar, and see a real future for this restaurant. We have always been delighted to be one of their local suppliers, and look forward to continuing to work with them. The sourdough pizzas on the menu are a great showcase for our flour.”

Elaine McKirdy from Linton Butcher’s added her good wishes to the mix, saying: “We make the meatballs exclusively for Hector’s, and are thrilled they have proven so popular. Our relationship has strengthened under the new owners whom we wish lots of success as they continue to grow this business in Dunbar. It sounds like they’ve definitely got the right people to lead the business forward. Choosing to work with local suppliers is always an excellent idea.”

Further details at https://hectorsdunbar.co.uk/

Hector’s is open seven days a week, please check website for opening hours.