Restaurant owner celebrating National Pizza Day with Yorkshire Live
Ben Craven, owner of Primo restaurant on Viaduct Street, Huddersfield town centre(Image: Yorkshire Live )
Huddersfield restaurant owner Ben Craven has spoken about life in the retail trade four months after he took on his first establishment.
The Huddersfield-born entrepreneur took on Primo, an Italian restaurant in Huddersfield town centre, in October which he reopened in November following a nine-day refurbishment.
Ben, 28, spoke to Yorkshire Live on Monday February 9 – National Pizza Day. He said Primo had been “fully booked” virtually from day one. However, he acknowledged that many other restaurants were struggling. Only last week Home restaurant in Lindley closed its doors after nine years, citing rising costs.
Ben kindly opened the restaurant on a Monday – when he’s normally shut – to showcase a few pizzas to Yorkshire Live. He’s also doing a £10 pizza offer on Tuesday, February 10. Primo is based in Viaduct Street and has been affected by railway engineering works which has led to road closures in recent weeks and months.
Ben said long-standing customers, as well as newcomers, had helped Primo to continuing success. He spoke about the importance of using the right ingredients and create a “cosy” vibe to keep people coming back.
He took over Primo from the previous owner, saying he wanted to “take a punt” owning his own restaurant. There were a few issues during the “soft launch” for friends and family, but he and his colleagues soon ironed out the teething problems.
“It has been fantastic ever since. We opened in November in the railway arches and have been practically fully booked. We have seen old guests and new faces. We did a deal in January to thank people and welcome them back.”
A dish from Primo Italian restaurant, Huddersfield (Image: Primo )
Get all the latest What’s On news straight to your inbox by signing up to our newsletter here.
Dining and Cooking