I’m sure I don’t need to convince you that the new Tier 2 restrictions for hospitality businesses are ill thought out, punative, and poorly communicated with no scientific merit. Just in case you’re still on the fence, my good friend Pete Brown has debunked any sensible arguments that may have been made in favour of the ‘substantial meal’ restriction.
If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, then simply put, any business in the all new Tier 2 serving alcohol (apart from grass roots music venues), for consumption on the premises, must serve it with a substantial meal. Further ‘clarity’ has been given to say that once that meal is finished the customer must be asked to leave (unless they’re having a soft drink or tea/coffee of course). I don’t begrudge music venues serving drinks, and I don’t believe we’re ready for a complete lift of restrictions. There’s lots of work to be done to rid us if this virus. However, restricting an industry which has followed the guidelines, made its businesses safer, more socially distanced, ensured customers track and trace, has had very low transmission rates and has centuries of experience operating as a controlled environment IS NOT WHAT NEEDS DOING.
What’s the point in getting angry? I’ve seen some extremely creative thinking on social media, so I thought I’d share a couple here, along with my own menu ideas…
I’m very much looking forward to TripAdvisor being turned on its head as angry pub goers complain that their meal arrived too quickly and their plates weren’t left on the table for more than a few minutes after finishing their last mouthfull!
So finally here’s my suggested menu of substantial meals to keep drinkers happy and at the table…
Bite & Bottle 