A landmark Wigan eatery is set to re-open as an Italian restaurant - and will be staffed by familiar faces
An enthusiastic businessman and restaurateur has pledged to breathe new life into a Wigan eatery despite its recent chequered past.
For years the Vale Royal was a hugely popular eatery, not least for its budget carveries.
But then the fortunes of the business on Gathurst Road, Orrell, waned and it closed. Four years ago, after a long hiatus, it was relaunched as The Vale as part of a bigger business revamp of the site, but last June bosses announced that, sadly, it was closing.
In such a tough hospitality environment, the building’s owners were increasingly sceptical that anyone could make a go of it as a restaurant again.
But then along came Hossein “Mo” Ghorbani who, until recently, jointly ran the Olive Garden Italian restaurant in Standish, has big ideas for the place, and convinced them otherwise.
Now he and his team are at work creating a new incarnation of the premises to be known as Vale Italiano.
And with the Olive Garden currently closed for what is believed to be refurbishment and an eventual relaunch, he’s bringing many of his old staff over to Orrell.
A substantial kitchen upgrade and changes to the decor are under way, the main current problem being the reconnection of a gas supply following the previous tenant’s departure.
If that happens soon, then a launch event may only be a few weeks away.
Mo, who previously also ran Crusader Taxis in Wigan, said: “I am looking forward to making The Vale an Italian restaurant and bringing it back to life.
"Everybody knows me from the Olive Garden and maybe they’ll come here and try this place out too.
"I come from an established restaurant background and know the business. I know how to deal with people and look after people.
"People know their food and the value of food and they want to be looked after. You can’t have a fake smile. I pride myself in knowing my regulars, including which drinks they like, whether they have ice or not and sometimes their preferred tables.
"And this place has huge potential. I fell in love with it the moment I walked in through the front door.
"It’s a good building, it has St John Rigby College on one side, a golf course on the other, it’s on a main road and within a short distance of so many communities including Orrell, Shevington, Kitt Green and Winstanley.”
The intention is to serve quality but affordable meals, with special deals at off-peak times and while this won’t happen immediately, he hopes to resume the Vale tradition of serving breakfasts.
It doesn’t concern Mo that the launch may come when the college is closed for summer as he will be quite happy with a slow start and then building up the business over a period of months or more (although he hopes bargain-hunting students and parents waiting to pick teens up will eventually be among customers).
He added: “While this is a new departure for the premises, I was keen to keep the iconic name of the place in the title: hence Vale Italiano.”