It’s a fond farewell alongside some exciting news for our bistro at YMCA Plymouth and our Discovery College.
After two-and-a-half successful years at the helm, the Bill’s Boys Bistro team are hanging up their chef’s hats and moving on to new ventures. Whilst it is with a heavy heart that they’re moving on, it is also exciting times for our community canteen, as the owners of the esteemed Brazilian restaurant Lost in Rio, will be stepping into the management shoes.
The new owners are set to bring some Brazilian flare to the menu while continuing to deliver the much-loved favourites people have come to enjoy with the current bistro team.
Father and son duo Ross and Josh took over YMCA Plymouth’s cafe in 2022, giving it a much-needed revamp, which included a whole menu refresh and a modern overhaul of its decor. Along with the changes came a lot more customers. Now a true community café, it caters to a huge range of people all day 7-days-a-week.
After expanding the cafe and running it flat-out throughout the week, Ross has decided that for health reasons, the time has come to pass the baton.
Proud of what he has achieved with the bistro, Ross said: “It’s sad to be moving on, but we’re proud of what we’ve achieved at YMCA with the Bistro that was named in honour of my father. We’ve felt part of the family at YMCA, but in life sometimes you need to put yourself and your own needs first, so for my health, I’ve decided that it’s time to move on to something new. Me and Josh are proud of what we’ve done and I couldn’t be more pleased with the fantastic new team we’ll be passing the reins to.”
Famous for their sizzling Brazilian steaks and sumptuous salads, the Lost in Rio team are set to shake up the YMCA’s Cafe, while continuing its community ethos and supporting YMCA Plymouth’s charitable services. Zuneid Bruno, Lost in Rio owner, has also previously helped run Sky Broadcasting’s staff canteen and has a wealth of experience catering to different scales and customers.
Bruno’s team will be continuing to support YMCA Plymouth with their charitable catering options too, such as supporting the free Friday Welcome Space within the canteen as well as providing free hot meals for eligible Discovery College students and other young people in need attending the YMCA Plymouth.
Zuneid Bruno, Lost in Rio owner said: “We’re delighted to be expanding in the Plymouth community with this exciting new venture. Since we opened our restaurant at Bretonside we’ve grown from strength to strength. Community is an essential part of what we’re about in Lost in Rio and the cafe at YMCA Plymouth is a true community venture. From supporting their youth clubs, to their college students, to their gym members and beyond, we can’t wait to get stuck in. To begin we will not bring any major changes as we want to stick with what people know and enjoy, but we will also bring a bit of a Brazilian twist to the menu as things develop.
The new team is set to take the Bistro from the end of July 2024, with more exciting details set to be announced over the next couple of months.
