BBC Share By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 Walford East in EastEnders: A complete history of the restaurant and its past owners Inside one of the soap's most iconic locations Ian Beale Janine Butcher Ravi Gulati Suki Panesar Share By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 Walford East is one of EastEnders’ hottest properties, sharing a colourful history with some of the soap’s biggest characters. Formerly owned by Suki Panesar and Ravi Gulati until last year, it’s currently on the market for a new owner. With George Knight sniffing around, what better time to take a look back at the history of Walford East, and its many owners? Here is a complete history of Walford East! It was Ian Beale who first had the idea of converting Walford East into a restaurant (Credit: BBC) When did Walford East become a restaurant? Walford East has been a local restaurant since 2013. Prior to that, the building was used for other purposes. If we go back to the mid 1980s, the location was occupied by a signwriting business. Fast forward two and a bit decades and the premises became Moon and Sons. This was an antique emporium, which was run by Alfie’s uncle Eddie Moon, and his two sons Anthony and Tyler. The business did not long last after Anthony developed a gambling addiction and ran up a high debt. Owing thousands to Derek Branning, Anthony was forced to flee Walford in August 2012. Moon and Sons folded shortly after that. Article continues below Read all the latest spoilers In 2013, wannabe entrepreneur Ian Beale purchased the building with grand plans to turn it into a restaurant. Walford East: What was it before? Ian Beale @ Le Square Wanting to bring an upmarket feel to Walford, the ever-modest Ian decided he would name his new restaurant after himself! But Ian Beale @ Le Square wasn’t meant to be. Ian ran into financial troubles and was forced to accept a loan from Janine Butcher. But as well as buying a share in the business, Janine wanted to ensure Ian didn’t get his name in lights. On opening night, she unveiled the restaurant was to be called Scarlett’s, in honour of her young daughter. Ian was livid – but there was nothing he could do! Scarlett’s Disaster struck in July 2013 when Scarlett’s flooded! The incident occurred after Jean Slater (who worked as the chef at Scarlett’s) realised she’d left her handbag behind after work. Jean, along with Shirley Carter and Bianca Butcher went back to look for her bag. But then Shirley knocked over a candle. A small fire broke out and the restaurant’s sprinklers kicked in – but they flooded the whole place. Beales Ian’s former wife Jane arrived back in Walford in 2014. Janine was off the scene by then, so Jane decided to become Ian’s business partner. The exes renamed Scarlett’s ‘Beales’ (how original!), and carried out a complete interior makeover. Ian continued as owner, until he was forced to sell Beales to Costmart to fund his youngest son Bobby’s private school fees. In 2017, Ian’s stepson Steven, who worked as manager, torched the restaurant as part of a dastardly scheme to kill Jane! Walford East was a joint venture between Ian and Masood (Credit: BBC) Walford East is born Ian re-bought the restaurant in 2018 and went into partnership with former postman Masood Ahmed. Mas had the idea of turning the place into a fusion restaurant – and with that Walford East was born. In 2019 Masood left Albert Square and sold his share of the business to Max Branning. His nieces Habiba and Iqra took on the joint role of running the restaurant. By 2021, the Ahmed sisters, Max and Ian had all departed, so Kathy and her grandson Peter took the helm. The pair tried their best to make a success, but they were eventually forced to sell up. Suki and the Panesars had control of Walford East until 2025 (Picture: BBC) Suki and Ravi take over Walford East In 2022, Walford East went on the market. It was purchased by businesswoman Suki Panesar and her stepson Ravi Gulati. The duo decided to keep the restaurant’s name, but change its food offering, serving contemporary Indian cuisine. Suki and Ravi still co-own the business, employing Zack Hudson as the chef. Keeping it in the family, Ravi’s son Davinder “Nugget” Gulati is a part-time waiter, as is his mum Priya Nandra-Hart. Sadly, that all came crumbling down when Bernie conned the Panesars out of their cash before fleeing the Square. This put Ravi in a tricky situation, and the family were forced to give up the restaurant as his money problems worsened. George revealed his plan to take over Walford East (Credit: BBC) George Knight? Walford East has been closed since Ravi was forced to shutter its doors last year. However, there’s now an interested party hoping to reopen – George Knight, whose tenure as landlord of The Queen Vic ended along with his marriage to Elaine. He’s interested in buying and running Walford East, although was let down when his offer was rejected. Thankfully, Nicola was on hand to invest, meaning that George’s plans are now back on. What does the future hold for Walford East? Read more: Who’s leaving, joining and returning to EastEnders? Complete list of cast exits, arrivals and returns. Share Good to Know Share By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 By Laura Morgan Jan 21 2026 Previous Story Next Story
