Gaucho bolsters senior leadership team with former Ivy and Granger & Co executives

Baton Berisha, chief executive of Rare Restaurants, has made several senior leadership appointments at Argentinian steak restaurant group Gaucho.

Berisha was appointed to the role in March, having served as chief executive of Wolseley Hospitality Group for two years shortly after its owners Minor International wrested control of the company from its founder Jeremy King.

He had also previously spent seven years at the Ivy Collection and was briefly managing director at D&D London (now Evolv Collection), which is being led by Martin Williams, former chief executive of Rare Restaurants.

Under Berisha’s leadership, Gaucho has welcomed Pedro Nunes as operations director for London, who brings more than a decade’s experience from the Ivy Collection, where he oversaw a number of openings and international franchise agreements.

Sean Weeraratna has been named regional operations director for Gaucho’s eight restaurants outside of London, while Anthony Ekizian joins Gaucho as culinary director, having most recently been group executive chef at Granger & Co, head of food at Aubaine Restaurants and group executive chef at Restaurant Associates UK.

Finally, Zack Charilaou has been promoted to business development director, overseeing sales and reservations. He has been with Gaucho for the past 17 years and will continue to seek out-of-restaurant event sales opportunities for the group.

Berisha said: “We are evolving Gaucho’s leadership structure to reflect the ambition of the brand. These new appointments and promotions will sharpen our focus, empower performance and support innovation across all areas of the business. I’m incredibly proud of the team we’re building, and we look forward to stepping into an exciting new chapter for Gaucho.”

Gaucho opened its first restaurant in London’s Piccadilly in 1994. It now operates 12 restaurants in London and eight regionally in Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Newcastle and Cardiff.