The first restaurant to join Basildon’s East Square cinema complex has been revealed.

The East Square Development will boast a 10-screen Empire cinema with a 500-person capacity and six restaurants – the first of which has been named as national chain Loungers.

Loungers, which operates 172 branches across England and Wale, describes itself as a café/bar combining elements of restaurants, British pub and coffee shop culture.

The East Square cinema and restaurants scheme, the council’s flagship £25m development aiming to boost the night-time economy and jobs market, is said to be on track to open in February 2022.

Basildon Council claims the cinema will feature the biggest screen outside of London’s Leicester Square.

“The progress on this scheme is exciting and the cinema and restaurants will breathe new life into this part of the town centre," said Cllr Andre Baggott, leader of the council.

"We want East Square to become a real destination of choice for our residents. A place to spend weekend and evening leisure time.

“Basildon is open for business and I am delighted that Loungers has chosen our town to expand their offer.”

Cllr Anthony Hedley said: “East Square will be a vibrant development, which will bring a night-time economy and more life into the town centre while boosting trade for local shops and providing new jobs for our residents. It’s excellent to have Loungers confirmed as our first restaurant and we look forward to more announcements of this kind in the coming months.”

A Spokesperson for Loungers added: “We are excited to be an anchor tenant for the East Square scheme in Basildon. We think that this scheme will be a great addition for the town centre, and are looking forward to welcoming customers to our Lounge here”.