Owner Brothers Ben and Joe Wright were born and raised in the village of Oscroft, a few miles east of Chester. With divergent early careers (Joe a chef in the Northwest and Ben working in London setting up a noughties dotcom, stints in hospitality, and in management at a Soho media company) they came back together in 2006 to ‘do their own thing’.
Ben & Joe
Ben and Joe’s first restaurant ‘Joseph Benjamin’ opened in Chester in 2006 and went on to be awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand for 12 consecutive years. Ben ran the restaurant ‘front of house’ and ‘did the books’ while award-winning chef Joe led the kitchen. For (too) many years, they worked every single shift. JB’s (as it was known) was a busy, popular neighbourhood bistro doing proper food with quality ingredients.
In 2012, inspired by life-long travels to Spain and Portugal, they opened a tapas bar called Porta. Located right next door to their larger restaurant.
The simplicity of Porta was a hit; its unpretentious, stripped-back menu, wine list and service style let ingredients – and customers – do the talking.
The winning formula was repeated in Altrincham in 2016 and on Chapel Street, Salford in 2018. In 2021 the original restaurant, Joseph Benjamin, was closed, making way for an expanded Porta in Chester.