Site and opening date confirmed for new All Hopes No Promises

The new All Hopes No Promises site in Preston

The new site of a Preston burger eatery and gaming bar has been confirmed along with an opening date.

All Hopes No Promises will open at St Wilfrid Street, behind the Bistrot Pierre restaurant in the city centre, on Saturday (April 13).

Owner Michael Evans has closed both Smashed Burger in Miller Arcade and All Hopes No Promises on Guildhall Street in the last few weeks amid long-running trademark-related legal threats from US fast food giant Smashburger. The name Smashed, which came from the cooking technique involving pressing loose ground beef directly onto the grill, will be retired entirely.

Michael told Blog Preston: “We’ve outgrown Miller Arcade, which had a tiny kitchen and that sometimes caused us problems. The kitchen is bigger here, it’s all on one floor and we just think it’s a better location.

“We’re happy to use All Hopes No Promises as the name. It’s so hard to find a business name. When we came up with All Hopes No Promises, chatting with my partner, it just clicked. People never get the name but they always ask and get intrigued by it. In Lancaster, we all have people stopping outside all the time taking a selfie.”

The new All Hopes No Promises will combine the ideas of both sites, offering burgers and video games from that you might have seen at Smashed, along with the cocktail menu from All Hopes No Promises. This matches what they have done with All Hopes No Promises in Lancaster.

Michael, who previously owned Pastels in Blackpool and is from Thornton-Cleveleys, has been sleeping in the flat above the new site as he seeks to reopen his business as quickly as possible.

The site on St Wilfrid Street was previously home to Fino Tapas and Mexican eatery La Neta, both under the ownership of Mark O’Rourke, and Korova Arts Café before that.

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