With the January sales in full swing, we waved goodbye to a manic year and welcomed in the new one with open arms.

2015 was a year of exciting

change and hard work, but on the flipside also included going back in time to the roaring twenties for our themed Award

ceremony in a derelict 1920’s

bank; Trips a plenty including 4

extra spaces to Rio and Iguanas checking in to Ibiza, Guyana and Cuba to name a few; Team bonding & Banter at the support day camping and finally recognising YOU guys

as the best in the business!

2016 really is the year for us to

further develop and hone the skills we have and get us to where we want to be. With the roadshow on the way, start thinking how YOU can make

this happen!

If you want to go anywhere exotic, you have to have a passport, and this year will see the launch of the ‘Development Passport’ to help each and every Iguana family member get to where they want to be. It contains all the information of how Las Iguanas can support you in your development and allows you to record the various stages of your developmental journey.

Team Iguanas

Happy New Year to all.

Firstly, what a fantastic end to 2015! There were so

many records broken over the festive season, in fact there are just too many to mention. We saw record week sales, record day sales, record bookings...etc. We also raised more money than ever before for your se-lected charities and delivered a massive amount of Christmas presents.... Well done to everyone for your huge efforts

To say 2015 has been somewhat of a crazy year is a

huge understatement. Which included lots of new restaurant openings and joining the Casual Dining Group.... Oh and changing the TIPS policy!

I would like to thank you all for your magnificent

support during 2015. I personally couldn't have done it

without all of you and your incredible dedication and commitment to the business. I couldn't imagine ever working with a better "army" of amazing people.

I really can't name individuals this month for their stand out hospitality performances as everyone has done such a sterling job of giving our guests the best Christ-mas ever... So I take my hat off (to reveal my bald head) and salute you all.

Now, I would like to say 2016 is going to be a breeze in

comparison, but we should all know better than that by now. We want to now drive forward and create as many new opportunities and new jobs for people this year by opening as many restaurants as we can without ever compromising on what makes us great... great food, great drink, great standards and most of all hiring great people joining.

We have so many exciting new locations signed up and I'm sure we will shoot the lights out on each and everyone of them with your support.

Lastly, it's not long now till the big awards ceremony, which Danny is working on. So start thinking who has

made a great impact on your site in 2015 in readiness to

vote. I promise we will make this years bigger and bet-

ter so get ready! (No pressure Danny)

Adios

Mos

Kirsty Reaney and the rest of the guys from Birmingham Resorts World served up some Latin loveliness to Bradley Walsh, Paul O’Grady and Dick and Dom, who just happened to be passing by in early December.

As the force awakened, Aaron Williams got involved in an Intergalactic Jeremy Kyle moment trying to work out who Darth Vader fathered.

Master Bartender Dan Jones ran a cocktail master class for three lucky ladies at the Cheshire Oaks restaurant, adding a little something extra to their nights proceedings.

Word is they loved it so much that they're planning on coming back as a group of about ten

strong to shake what their mumma gave em!

Big shout to the Cheshire Oaks gang and of course Dan, who Mike Yoxall advised ‘really looked after the girls and made their night’.

The Oaks crew are now planning to advertise these classes on social media soon and get interest for more bookings too.

All across the estate Iguanas were preparing for Christmas and along with the choco hampers we sent out to everyone there were plenty of festive jumpers out in force for Christmas Jumper day.

A big shout to Cheshire Oaks and Abbie Rigby for sorting out a photo frame and box of tricks for their Xmas parties to enjoy some photo booth fun and also Trafford who received a big hamper from one of their regulars

Guys, the race is DONE!

You have all served your hearts out and tour-guided our customers through our exotic menu. All this for the chance to be taken back to our origins and sample first hand authentic Latin American hospitality, whist experiencing the best of Brazilian culture that Rio De Janeiro has to offer.

The winners have lived and breathed the core elements of what makes us Las Iguanas and this has been demonstrated in some unbelievable scores throughout the year.

Firstly a huge shout-out to EXETER who unfortunately could only win one round of the race, (as per

T&C’s), but who have led the pack from start to finish, so well done you guys!

A huge shout out to the other winners; SWANSEA & MILTON KEYNES, who also get 4 places each,

allowing one Iguana per department from their restaurant on the trip and not forgetting the 2 heroes from last years Awards ceremony - Support Chef of the Year - ALI ARAB and Support Manager of the Year - ALEXA STINGA, well done you.

P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 Average

Exeter 100.00% 99.40% 100.00% 98.10% 95.90% 91.30% 97.45%

Deansgate 97.39% 94.40% 98.30% 100.00% 93.60% 90.00% 95.61%

Swansea 98.16% 85.00% 99.60% 90% 99.30% 99.70% 95.29%

Nottingham 99.39% 89.70% 99.30% 96.40% 91.70% 90.00% 94.41%

Spitalfields 89.86% 87.80% 98.60% 89.00% 97.70% 99.60% 93.76%

Sheffield 73.86% 99.40% 98.20% 94.80% 99.80% 96.40% 93.74%

Plymouth 87.68% 100.00% 95.40% 96.60% 99.80% 82.70% 93.70%

MK 90.13% 97.90% 99.30% 97.80% 97.90% 79.10% 93.69%

Lakeside 95.08% 98.20% 93.30% 93.40% 86.30% 89.30% 92.60%

Wembley 81.00% 86.00% 100.00% 98.40% 95.10% 92.30% 92.13%

Firstly a huge shout out to Chrysa from Bristol Cribbs Causeway restaurant who only a few weeks ago saved someone’s life!! The gentleman was choking on a steak churrasco and was going blue, but with lightening reactions she managed to dislodge the steak from his throat! Awesome work!

Next up is Balraj Singh Johal from Nottingham, who Matt Fraser advised always gets great feedback from guests, but recently

acquired 2 new guests that visit to see him. On their first visit they

asked where he had worked previously and where he had been

trained?! It turns out they are involved with Michelin star

restaurants and thought he’d previously worked in a high end venue and been trained there!!! They certainly know a thing or two about hospitality, especially as their daughter is a FOH manager and their son is a Michelin star chef,.

They love our food, but love Bals service even more and on their second visit when he was due to finish his shift he stayed late

specifically to serve them… what a guy!

As the front page picture shows, it was a big month for charity because we reignited our annual partnership with the toy store ‘the Entertainer’.

For every booking of 10 or more across

the business over the Xmas period we

gave £5, along with a matched donation

from the Entertainer. This went towards toys and games for our restaurants chosen children’s charities across the UK.

As I reported last month, Charlotte Ellins, Alex Folwell, Sara Roberts, Christina Placidi, Lucy Percy, Gemma Holmes, Steve Gilbert, Nick Buckley and Edyta

Pietka ran 5k through London dressed as

Santa and raised £2012 for Brainwave -

supporting children with a range of con-ditions and developmental needs.

Anne-Marie Marsay GM - Braintree Kyle Wilson SC - Newport Dimosthenis Bakatselos SC - Leamington Spa Holly Grice DM- Birmingham RW Sunil Shetty SSC - Milton Keynes Clifford Dourado JSC - RFH

General Manager Aberdeen General Manager Exeter General Manager Reading Deputy Manager Cambridge Deputy Manager/Assistant Cardiff Assistant Manager Torquay Assistant Manager Cambridge Bar Manager Stratford General Manager Brunswick Square Deputy Manager Brunswick Square Assistant Manager Brunswick Square General Manager York Deputy Manager York Assistant Manager York Deputy Manager Basingstoke Assistant Manager Basingstoke Deputy Manager Harrogate Deputy Manager Newcastle Quays Head Chef Oxford Head Chef Glasgow Head Chef Blackpool Sous Chef Newport Sous Chef/Junior Sous Chef Glasgow Senior SC/Sous/Jnr Sous Chef Edinburgh Sous Chef/Jnr Sous Chef Birmingham RW Sous Chef Lakeside Sous Chef Norwich Junior Sous Chef Blackpool Junior Sous Chef Newport Junior Sous Chef Leamington Spa Junior Sous Chef Mermaid Quay Junior Sous Chef Spitalfields Junior Sous Chef/Sous Chef Newcastle Junior Sous Chef/Sous Chef Meadowhall Head Chef Brunswick Square

Junior Sous Chef Mermaid Quay Junior Sous Chef Spitalfields Junior Sous Chef/Sous Chef Newcastle Junior Sous Chef/Sous Chef Meadowhall Head Chef Brunswick Square Junior Sous Chef Brunswick Square Junior Sous Chef Braintree Junior Sous Chef Braintree Head Chef York Sous Chef York Junior Sous Chef York Head Chef Harrogate Sous Chef Harrogate Head Chef Newcastle Quays Sous Chef Newcastle Quays Sous Chef Harrogate Sous Chef Newcastle Quays

Newcastle Quays

Brunswick

Square

Brighton Marina

Mos and Lucy headed to Argentina this month for a design research trip to make sure we keep the restaurants looking fresh and fantastic, and came back with loads of exciting new ideas.

Of course, Buenos Aires is the capital of cow and Mos got down and personal with a number of bovine

body parts over the course of 48

hours in Buenos Aires, strictly in the name of benchmarking against our menu. Our resident veggie Lucy stuck to pasta.

Plymouth - It was a busy evening for them, as we want to give special mention to the Manager (we didn't catch his name, but he was wearing a shirt rather than the uniform, so we assume he was the manager) as despite being rushed of his feet, he seemed to do nothing other than ensure that everybody was having a good time and remained cheerful throughout, and to our waiter, Dan J, who was really friendly and helpful and didn't stop smiling throughout the entire time we were there.

GWQ - I just wanted to thank you for an amazing evening for our Babcock Christmas Night Out. All the attendees commented on how lovely the food was and what a great night it was.

Our waitress Sophie was absolutely amazing and could not have been more professional or helpful-she is an absolute credit to your organisation.

Deansgate - “Great evening with family” We popped into Las Iguanas on Manchester Deansgate last night with our two daughters. We hadn't booked and on a such a busy night, so close to Xmas, we weren't expecting a table! The hostess at the door was wonderfully friendly and accommodating, even checking with us whether it was ok for us to be seated next to a large table who were enjoying a Xmas party. The atmosphere was brilliant! The staff were incredibly attentive and so, so good with the children! The food was delicious, well priced and served very quickly. When we left the restaurant, even the busy bar staff bothered to shout a friendly "goodbye"! We have only recently discovered this chain (having previously visited the Trafford Centre branch - which is also excellent) but we will return many times over. Simple, no fuss, good old-fashioned customer service! The staff all always seem really happy and well looked after too, which is the sign of a great company to work for. (This is our all time fave review as its everything our staff should do)

Birmingham

“Excellent service and great extras”

My work colleagues had our Christmas meal at this restaurant. We were a large party and were well served by Jennifer and her colleagues who looked after us and helped make it a great dining experience and social event. Jennifer is also the restaurant's unofficial Artist in Residence who found time to sketch a few of us in between our courses. The next Banksy perhaps?

RFH - “Fantastic New Year's Eve ”

I booked the NYE party in advance but couple of my friends also wanted to join us one day before the NYE party ! The NYE organiser was great to get tickets for my friends so I am grateful When we went to the venue it was easily get to via Waterloo station which was running on time , then according to the instruction was given by the la iguanas we had to q to get into south bank and it was only like 10 min waiting When we get to the restaurant we were greeted by the manager and also staff from la iguanas! The food and drinks were so tasty and colourful! We had lovely friendly staff by the bar all night ! Nye party was organised so well in details including Brazilian dancers, live music, DJ etc. Whatever people think about the restaurant or the party I would strongly recommended to people in he future especially if you are thinking a NYE party ! The view for the fireworks were fantastic! I can't thank enough the all the staff who worked on that night for their hospitality throughout the night When it comes to the lunch or dinner at la iguanas , I love their food it's because it's delicious , reasonable price for the big dishes !

Swansea - “Had a celebration lunch here for my 70th birthday”

delicious lunch with my friends who were eating here for the first time. they enjoyed their meal and would certainly visit again. Well done Las iguanas for excellent service and enjoyable atmosphere

Blackpool - “Lovely service, lovely food ”

I ate here around the 18th December upon visiting family members who live just on the outskirts of Blackpool, I couldn't fault the food what so ever I have never had food so tasty before, the service from the waiter named Sean was very good, very quick very chatty and a pleasure to talk to. I also visited again New Year's Day as a second visit to Blackpool and again there was nothing I could fault. All I need is for a las iguanas to Come to my hometown

We have some amazing things in the pipeline, including the full announcement and live voting for this years Awards Ceremony coming very soon.

The Development Roadshow will be doing the rounds visiting every restaurant within the business. It’s an opportunity to get support and help from the roadshow teams and ask any questions you may have regarding your developmental needs, to get you where you want to be and how to do it.

Plans are being made on how to make the Best Bartender Competition even bigger and better than

last year where 38 contestants from around the

company competed in front of the general public in the centre of Stratford Westfield Shopping Centre.

Finally we will be launching a company wide engagement survey, finding out how you feel, so that we can act on your feedback and help improve the motivation and engagement levels within your individual restaurants.

WATCH THIS SPACE!