A LANDMARK Epping restaurant has changed hands.

The Old Orleans restaurant in Epping New Road at the Wake Arms Roundabout closed on September 26 and is currently being transformed in to a Miller and Carter steakhouse.

The restaurant was bought from the company Intertain by Mitchells and Butlers, which also owns the Harvesters restaurant chain, as part of a deal believed to be worth £2 to £3 million that saw seven other Old Orleans restaurants change hands.

A six figure sum is being invested in the restaurant and the old staff are being retrained for positions in the new Miller and Carter.

A Mitchells and Butlers spokesman said: “"We are delighted to have acquired a fantastic site in Epping.

"This represents Mitchells & Butlers making significant investment in the local area as we continue to expand our key brands across the UK."

In 2007 a fire tore through the restaurant severely damaging it but no one was injured.