Kettering town centre restaurant ready to reopen with new menu and 'surprises'

It’s been two and a half years since a Kettering restaurant shut up shop due to the Covid lockdown, but now staff are counting down to when diners will be welcomed back through the doors.

Wildwood in Market Place, forced to close when restrictions were first introduced in March 2020, has announced it will reopen in September.

While other restaurants welcomed visitors back when lockdown measures were eased, Wildwood in Kettering remained shut despite branches in nearby Market Harborough and Rushden Lakes reopening.

Newly appointed manager Daniel Ferariu has started to recruit his new team.

He said: “We are going to reopen with a new team. The menu has been changed – it’s going to be fresh and I’m so excited.”

Mr Ferariu is looking to employ seven chefs and about 10 waiting staff. He previously managed restaurants in Northampton specialising in Italian cuisine.

The menu offers Mediterranean-inspired dishes including, pizzas, pastas and risottos as well as burgers, salads and steaks.

He said: “We are going to give the waiting staff proper training so that they know everything about the menu and can recommend wines to go with the meals.

"I came to Kettering because the company has been so supportive. It’s a nice area and this is going to be a nice place.

"We want all kinds of customers. You care for them – this is how we are going to get the customers.

"I will be introducing different surprises and focussing on quality.”

The restaurant first opened in 2017, taking on the site of the much-loved former Mister Ray store which closed after 33 years of trading.