Celebrating CODE Hospitality’s Happiest Places To Work 2025

On Monday 1 September, they packed into Bubala in King’s Cross to celebrate the announcement of CODE Hospitality’s Happiest Places To Work 2025, in partnership with Planday and supported by URocked.

The evening was convivial and celebratory, fuelled by East London Liquor Co Lemon Drop cocktails, wines poured en magnum by The Modern Merchant, beers from 40ft Brewery and Braybrooke, and refreshing Botivo cucumber smashes. More than just a party, it was a rare chance for teams to take a night off, toast their achievements, and connect with like-minded hospitality folk from across the country. (Special mention to Jamie Lewis, Drew Fleming and the Kiki Lounge team, who flew over from the Isle of Man especially for the occasion.)

“We all know 2025 has been another very tough year,” said Adam Hyman, founder of Knife & Fork Media, as he presented the awards. “We must continue to fly the flag for hospitality, make sure our industry is a happy place to work, and keep evolving. One of our main missions at CODE is to support the industry, and our Happiest Places to Work pushes staff happiness to the top of the agenda.”

That message was echoed by Brett Smith, VP of Customer Experience at Planday, who added: “I truly believe that good employee experiences breed great customer experiences.”

From 420 entries, 25 businesses were named among CODE Hospitality’s Happiest Places To Work 2025. The night’s top accolade went to Bubala itself, the evening’s host. Accepting the award, founder Marc Summers said: “This is a real pinch-me moment to win an award based on feedback from our own team. We’ve grown from 40 employees to 140 in a short space of time. Everyone said it would be really hard—and they were right—but it’s not impossible. That’s down to the tireless work of our managers and team, who put in so much every day to make Bubala a great place to work.”

After the presentation, guests enjoyed vegetarian canapés from the Bubala kitchen—tamari oyster mushroom skewers, latkes with baba ganoush, and baby gem leaves topped with tabbouleh and sumac jam. The room was abuzz with industry chatter, as new connections were made, collaborations cooked up, and gossip traded. The crowd was as diverse as the industry itself: independents and global groups, hotels and restaurants, bars, cafés, and even a fish and chip shop.

Guests came from all over the country, many taking the opportunity to squeeze in a visit to a London restaurant while they were in town. The team from Kiki Lounge were fresh from a long lunch and ‘fluffy’ Garibaldis at the Dante New York takeover of Claridge’s; the crew from Bank and Lapin in Bristol went to fellow winner Woodhead Restaurant Group’s Fitzrovia restaurant 64 Goodge Street), while David and Anette Taylor of Grace & Savour in Solihull popped in to their former Maaemo colleague Jordan Bailey’s new smashburger spot, Heard, in Borough.

Guests left with a spring in their step—and gift bags packed with yellow Botivo socks, Happy Tuesdays electrolyte sachets, Planday “Happiness” essential oil rollers, and handy wooden wine keys from event supporters URocked.

The night was a reminder that hospitality shines brightest when it comes together—not just to celebrate food and drink, but the people who make the industry thrive.