Discovering Mezzo’s recipe for success

In the latest edition of Marketing Derby’s Innovate magazine, we meet Skevy Ioannides and David Meredith, the couple behind Mezzo restaurant.

Launched in 2021, the Pride Park business, which specialises in serving fresh, healthy food, has proven to be an instant hit.

The business has already scooped awards, most recently winning the Best for Sustainability Award at the Marketing Derby Food and Drink Awards.

And it has made its first foray into on-site catering, providing the catering for the recent Padel World Championship qualifiers at the nearby We Are Padel (BH) centre.

Skevy tells Innovate that opening her own business serving fresh, high-quality, healthy, affordable food, was the culmination of a long-held dream.

However, opening a restaurant in the midst of a pandemic was perhaps not the most ideal of timing – and Skevy admits there were times when she felt her dream would be short-lived.

She told Innovate: “I’ll admit that there were times in the first three months when I didn’t know if we would survive. We knew it was going to be challenging.

“We needed to get people to understand what we are and where we are.

“But then, all of a sudden, it seemed to happen. People started to notice us, to recognise us and they were coming in and trying our stuff.

“They were saying the restaurant was amazing – and then they began bringing other people with them.

“Now, I’m able to serve all the cuisines that I like to cook and which I’m passionate about and while, at one point, I might go home and worry, now I can go home with a smile. It’s a really great buzz.”

David said: “Some people told us we were mad to go ahead but we were convinced we should continue because there was nothing like us and we believed in what we were doing.

“What I realise now is that, when you do something like this, you may want it to all happen very quickly but it just takes a bit of time for word to get around.”

The concept – and the restaurant’s name – is a nod towards the mezze pick-and-mix dining that is so popular in Greek and Cypriot culture.

Mezzo’s focus is firmly on healthy eating, with Skevy and David believing that what people consume plays a major role in their physical and mental wellbeing.

The concept has been a great success, with Mezzo’s take-out food bowls proving particularly popular.

But the couple believe there’s plenty of potential still to exploit.

David told Innovate: “Longer term, if we get to a certain threshold where we’re happy with the numbers, we could look at a second site. In the end, you’d perhaps want one at all four points of the compass in Derby.”

To read the full feature in the latest Innovate magazine click here.