Cath Rennies / Rancho Pancho Restaurants and bars began in 1996, with the first site being at Wellbank in Dundee.
The Wellbank Restaurant was formerly known as "The Wellbank Arms" which was a steady going village pub, and the hub of the community in Wellbank. Many a good Ceilidh was had at the Wellbank Arms which dates back to 1965.
Graham Wise took over the Wellbank Arms in early 1996 and immediately set about realising a dream of owning a restaurant in his home city. Grahams background in the hospitality field was extensive with a string of restaurants and night clubs as far afield as Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.
The vision was to create two restaurants under one roof, whilst also retaining the history, charm and character of the original Wellbank Arms. The two restaurants were to be "Cath Rennies" named after a previous long term landlady of the Wellbank Arms and the second "Rancho Pancho" which was to offer Authentic Mexican style cuisine.www.ranchopancho.com
Following the great success of the Wellbank restaurant, another Rancho Pancho restaurant was opened in July 2004, again to great critical acclaim in the city centre of Dundee. At this point the restaurants became a real family business with Graham's wife Ann and his son Gavin coming on board. Ann's role as Wedding Co-ordinator brings a personal touch to the way Cath Rennies organises ,plans and implements that special day and her "nothing is too much trouble" attitude has earned her an enviable reputation as one of the finest in her field. Gavin, who has worked for some of the finest restaurants around the world, looks after the day to day running of the restaurants, and also works along side Graham on the new projects that are in the pipeline for this ambitious young company.
Our Perth restaurant opened in May this year and has been very well received by the people of Perth. Along with this the family are have now received planning permission to add a 14 bedroom ,state of the art, boutique hotel to the Cath Rennies Restaurant with two more Rancho Panchos earmarked for summer 09.
