Upton-Upon-Severn
Upton was the first restaurant to be opened up in the Valentinos chain, and was unfortunately closed down due to expansion plans. It's last night of trading was Saturday the 8th of April, 2000.
Set in the centre of this idyllic town, Valentinos was initially opened in 1988 by Franco with his wife, Mandy, and his then partner, Chechy. However, after running the restaurant jointly for a few years, Franco had seen the potential for the premises, and bought his partner out to run it solely with his wife.
It was the perfect location for Franco to have chosen. A town with a population of 2,000, but with a constant stream of visitors and tourists all year long, who come to view the beautiful setting over the River Severn, and the historic buildings dating back over 500 years.
The town is also very popular for it's renowned festivals, including the world renowned Jazz festival over the last weekend of June, the Water festival over the August Bank Holiday, and the Folk Festival over the May Day Bank Holiday.
It was over these festivals that the town was really set alight, and the Upton branch still holds the Valentinos record for most covers in a single evening, managing to seat and cook for 240 people on the Saturday night of the Jazz festival in 1998.