Business Profile
Le Petit Square - Fine dining in central Newbury
14th February 2008
THE Square and Le Petit Square are acknowledged by no less than the prestigious Michelin Guide, which has awarded the two Newbury restaurants ‘Recommended’ status for the second year running.
However, few people ever meet the husband and wife team behind these two pinnacles of fine dining and first class service, not least because much of the time Marwan and Suzanne Hemchaoui are at the Square and Le Petit Square respectively, ever building their enviable reputation. There are even people who do not realise the restaurants are related, let alone the owners are married.
Suzanne Hemchaoui takes up the story that led to the creation of these two restaurants: “I started out in Essex and went to catering college, and from there I decided to hit the bright lights and headed for London. I joined the Intercontinental hotel chain, which was a great introduction and within two-and-a-half years I became the head of a department. I did that by the age of 21 and I was the youngest manager in Intercontinental and the only female. While there I also studied hotel and restaurant management in Westminster to further improve my knowledge of the industry.
“Marwan is originally from Lebanon. He grew up in Cyprus and Greece before coming to University in London. He was actually wanted to be a micro-biologist, but followed a girlfriend into hotel school in Switzerland before coming to the Intercontinental, which is where we met. I was in food and beverage and he was front-of-house, and then rooms.
“I was always hungry for the next thing. I was desperate to get on the Savoy Hotel’s trainee manager scheme, but I got pipped at the post. Undeterred I devised my own training programme and when I was 24 I went back to the Savoy, and was appointed restaurant manager, which was when I discovered how much I loved being front-of-house.”
Thriving careers and two children later, they opted to go into business together: “We were looking for a restaurant and that was when The Square (in Weavers Walk) landed in our lap and we moved to Newbury from Whitchurch, and it evolved to offer excellent contemporary fine dining.
“Living together and working together can be pretty hard so we were looking for another opportunity, something that I would run, which is how Le Petit Square in the Market Place was born. I love France and I loved French food. Le Petit Square is an authentic French bistro.
“We are both thrilled with our Michelin recommendation and it has brought a surge or customers to both restaurants and hopefully added to our loyal clientele.
“What next? We love what we are doing, but it would be nice to have a small upmarket restaurant and hotel, a freehold premise, were we could make use of all our skills, together.”
Le Petit Square
Tel: (01635) 550770
Fax: (01635) 529669
Web: www.lepetitsquare.co.uk
E-mail: enquiries@lepetitsquare.co.uk
The Square
Tel: (01635) 44805
Fax: (01635) 523114
Web: www.thesquarenewbury.co.uk
E-mail: enquiries@thesquarenewbury.co.uk
