R.I.P Rootes

The Rootes Restaurant closed in July and there are no set plans for how the space will be used in the future.

Warwick Retail saw over the last several years a massive decline in business in the Rootes Restaurant. It has been claimed that this was due to changing tastes of students coupled with the ever increasing number of food outlets on campus.

This meant the restaurant became disproportionately expensive to maintain and the University felt money was better spent elsewhere.

Previously, Rootes Restaurant was known to many students as serving a range of cultural foods. However, it has been mentioned that the reason for the decline in sales was due to other outlets on campus such as The Dirty Duck and Xananas now serves more international cuisine.

The decision was made in July this year with the University believing that by revamping other outlets on campus an “improved choice and variety will fill the niche that Rootes previously occupied”, including an extended menu at Bar Fusion, Warwick Retail announced.

The closure of Rootes Restaurant also comes at a time which has just seen the opening of Gusto, an oven-bar serving a range of foods from pasta and burgers to seafood and tapas.

James Oyedele, a second-year English Literature student, believes that “it was not advertised effectively in comparison to the SU outlets.”

It is clear that the restaurant did not successfully attract the student market in recent years and therefore the closure would not have been unexpected amongst the student body.

So far there has been no formal announcement of future plans for the space and a feasibility study, to decide on future use of the now free space, has been commissioned.