You are here: Home > About us > Our history Mitchells & Butlers Home HOME ABOUT US OUR BRANDS GIFT CARDS INVESTORS NEWS & MEDIA RESPONSIBILITY CAREERS ABOUT US Company overview Our strategy Our people Our approach to business Property and development Our history Contact us Our history Since two Midlands families came together to form Mitchells & Butlers in 1898, we've grown to become the leading restaurant and pub company in the UK. We've always been pioneers in the pub industry and grew gradually until we were running 7,000 pubs in the 1980s. The landmark Beer Orders in 1989 changed everything, but since then we've evolved rapidly with innovative brands like All Bar One, Browns and O'Neill's responding to the mood of the times. Back in the 1980s beer was by far our biggest seller, but nowadays, 50% of our sales comes from food. In fact, we now serve around 135 million meals a year, as well as some 435 million drinks. From timeless London pubs to cutting edge city centre brasseries, from Liverpool's grand Philharmonic Dining Rooms to the Horseshoe Bar in Glasgow, we have a rich array of restaurants and pubs that reflect all the diversity and history you'd expect from a company well into its second century. You can rest assured we'll be doing everything we can to make the next 100 years every bit as interesting. 1898 Two Midlands brewing and pub empires merge to form Mitchells & Butlers. 1960s We merge with Bass, Ratcliff and Gretton Ltd then Charrington United, before becoming Bass PLC. 1980s We run 7,000 pubs all over the UK, with beer by far our biggest seller. The business splits into separate brewing and retailing divisions called Bass Brewers and Bass Taverns. 1990s As tastes change, food becomes key to our sales. Our first O'Neill's opens in Aberdeen and our first All Bar One in Surrey. We acquire Harvester, Browns and 550 pubs from Punch, as Mitchells & Butlers grows dramatically. 2000s Bass PLC becomes Six Continents PLC. Three years later, the pub division lists separately to become Mitchells & Butlers once again. We pursue a strategy of operating large, food-led businesses, acquiring 239 pub restaurants from Whitbread PLC and exchanging 44 pub restaurants for 21 Express by Holiday Inn lodges. 2010 The disposal of 333 Town and Community pubs to Stonegate Pub Company is announced. This is quickly followed by the purchase of 22 Ha Ha Bar & Grill businesses, which paves the way for more conversions to the hugely successful All Bar One and Browns brands. 2014 We acquired the majority of the Orchid Pub Group, including 173 predominantly freehold pubs and the Orchid head office. The opportunity to acquire these businesses from Orchid has expanded Mitchells & Butlers share of the growing eating out market and reaffirms our position as the leading restaurant and pub operator in the UK. FIND A RESTAURANT/PUB Enter a postcode, location or pub name All brands All Bar One Browns Castle Crown Carveries Ember Inns Harvester Innkeeper's Lodge Miller & Carter Neighbourhood Pubs Nicholson's O'Neill's Oak Tree Orchid Pubs Premium Country Pubs Sizzling Pubs Stonehouse Pizza & Carvery Toby Carvery Vintage Inns SHARE PRICE LATEST REPORTS Annual Report 2020 Download PDF (6.5MB) NEWS ALERTS Keep up to date with Mitchells & Butlers corporate information and news by subscribing to our email alerts and RSS feeds. Subscribe now Contact Us CONTACT US ACCESSIBILITY SITEMAP LEGAL NOTICE INFORMATION POLICIES PRIVACY POLICY COOKIES © Mitchells & Butlers 2021 ABOUT US Company overview Our strategy Our people Our approach to business Our history Contact us OUR BRANDS Sizzling Pubs Vintage Inns Harvester Ember Inns Toby Carvery Crown Carveries Castle Nicholson's Premium Country Pubs O'Neill's ALEX All Bar One Village Pub & Kitchen Miller & Carter Browns Innkeeper's Lodge Stonehouse Pizza & Carvery INVESTORS Investor overview The Market Business strategy Financial performance Our Management Business Conduct Modern Slavery Statement Share price and tools Financial calendar Annual report Shareholder information Securitisation and debt information Analysts Investor contacts NEWS & MEDIA Company news Brand news Brand offers Media resources Media contacts Subscribe RESPONSIBILITY Good food Serving alcohol responsibly Our employees Working with local communities Environmental concerns Business conduct Responsibility contacts CAREERS Careers and jobs home* About our brands* Search for a job and career* Why join us* *These links go to our careers website