Order a takeaway, buy a voucher, leave a review: how you can help a restaurant industry on its knees

The past week has been one of the toughest the restaurant industry has ever faced. As the coronavirus crisis widens, many chefs and restaurateurs are faced with an existential threat. Some have shut up shop, seeing little point in opening when customers are staying away. Others are doing their best to keep the ship sailing.

While many European countries restaurants have been shut completely, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson has stopped short of such a measure, advising that customers stay away. This has enraged restaurant owners, who may find it impossible to claim insurance for the costs of closure. “The Government has effectively shut the hospitality industry without any support," says Kate Nicholls, the chief executive of UK Hospitality, "and this announcement will lead to thousands of businesses closing their doors for good, and hundreds of thousands of job losses.”

Last week, Telegraph Food reported that sales in many restaurants, particularly outside London, were holding up. It now seems that, almost across the board, footfall is dramatically down. The business rates relief for establishments with a rateable value under £51k has been described by some as “comical”. Many were holding out for a Government reprieve under a potential total lockdown.

“I suppose the real problem is no one knows when it’s going to end,” says Jan Woroniecki, owner of Baltic and Ognisko restaurants in London. “The sands keep shifting under our feet. We have to wait for rock bottom and readjust to the new reality for a while, and see what we can build from there.” Woroniecki says keeping staff on the payroll is a primary concern.

Restaurants want to stay open and serve customers, and some are open as normal. However, many have been forced to close temporarily, with a host of the capital's Chinatown restaurants in particular shutting up shop. On Instagram, Xiaoxiao Wang, director of Noodle and Beer in Spitalfields, London, wrote: “As the unprecedented outbreak of coronavirus continues, we have decided to close our restaurant temporarily. We are in a very serious situation. We must collaborate in everything we can.” Others, like Craft in Birmingham, have reduced opening hours.

A working group of food and beverage professionals has published guidelines to restaurants staying open. The document, which has been evaluated by epidemiologists, public health experts, biologists and doctors, says there is no way to completely eliminate the risk of coronavirus spreading in restaurants, but they can minimise the risk by “dramatically” increasing handwashing frequency, and having “more frequent and intense cleaning and sanitising” of equipment and surfaces.

The prospect of a favourite local restaurant closing down will send shivers down the spines of many customers, so, without actually eating there, what can diners do to help their beloved spots in tough times?

1. Order a takeaway

Deliveries and takeaways are some of the most obvious ways in which you can carry on supporting a restaurant.

Many businesses that don't already offer takeaways are working with delivery companies to continue their output, and it's an area of the industry that seems to be thriving in the face of the coronavirus crisis: takeaways and fast food sales rose 8.7 per cent in Feburary. “We urge people to sign the petition to ask that delivery companies reduce the commission they take from small businesses to help us through these uncertain times,” says Paul Ambrose, the co-founder and head chef of KraPow LDN in Clapton, London.

In Edinburgh, Harajuku Kitchen is waiting to be listed on Uber Eats and Deliveroo, and is launching its own delivery service, personally delivering food across the city. “We want to be able to help those who are self-isolating or working from home and can’t get out,” says chef patron Kaori Simpson. “Like other small independent restaurants, we want to remind customers that we are still here, they can still get their sushi fix, only now it can be delivered right to their doors.”

If you are self-isolating, you can order from a local restaurant and drive or walk to pick up your order. “This will alleviate pressures on them to deliver,” says Jurgen Ketel, the MD EMEA at Givex, which provides technology to restaurants.

At The Oxford Arms in Oxfordshire, an award-winning gastropub, chef patron Bryn Jones has just launched Eat Out At Home, offering 20 per cent off a pick-up menu. Locals can collect dishes like chicken liver and Armagnac parfait or venison burgers, at the door. “We have been asked over the weekend by our customers if we could start preparing our dishes to be taken away during this coronavirus situation,” Jones explains. “We thought it’s the right time to help those who prefer to stay at home but still would like something freshly cooked and not out of the tin.”

Over at The Marram Grass in Anglesey, chef owner Ellis Barrie, who stars on the Ready Steady Cook reboot, has to options for delivery locally each week. This week kicks off with slow cooked curried welsh lamb and whole catch of the day, both served sides and desserts. Back in Edinburgh, Wedgwood the Restaurant has launched a collection service. Lupins, in London Bridge, is offering an all-day delivery service of freezable meals.

In Watlington, Oxfordshire, The Orange Bakery is aiming to keep open (the bread is baked at the owners' home), and deliver to locals. “We are planning to deliver to anyone in Watlington who is self-isolating” says Kitty Tait. “We will also look at drop-off points. We have an elderly population and want to keep them very safe and well fed.”

2. Leave an online review

A takeaway service doesn't suit all restaurants: in many cases offering food-to-go will ruin a dish. “No one wants fish that becomes mush after five minutes,” says Piers Baker, who runs The Sun Inn, Dedham, and Church Street Tavern in Colchester.

In such cases, show your support on sites like Tripadvisor and OpenTable: customer feedback is more powerful than ever. Some positive comments after a nice meal (even if enjoyed a while ago), can help encourage others to visit a restaurant, while providing a morale boost during tough times. “Reviews are so important for restaurants. Even if you can’t visit at the moment, make sure you’ve reviewed them on all platforms.”

3. Share the love on social media

Social media posts and reviews are welcome, too, say chefs and restaurateurs, to encourage custom when restaurants reopen. “We’d really appreciate it if customers could like and share our Facebook page," says Becky Jones of Potato Tomato in Whitstable, Kent, "so that when things are back to normal we’ll get some new customers in.”

4. Think outside the box

There are other options for restaurant goers prevented from eating out. The team at Kahani will come and cook in your home. Likewise, Park's Edge Bar & Kitchen in Herne Hill is introducing an at-home chef and bar service.

Or how about buying some of their merchandise? Restaurants often have t-shirts, hats, aprons, mugs available; now could be the time to get one. If your beloved restaurant has a cookbook, why not buy it?

Michelin-starred Pied à Terre in London’s Fitzrovia offers a private chef’s table. Others, like Trullo, Murano and Cafe Murano, all in London, suggest pre-booking Christmas parties already.

Prawn on the Lawn, which has sites in London and Cornwall, doubles up as a fishmonger, so buying their fish for home cooking would still support trade. One London restaurant is even looking at offering haircuts.

5. Buy a voucher

Many chefs are turning to vouchers, which allows customers to spend now in return for a meal when the virus subsides. Jamie Shail, of Rothay Manor in the Lake District, says it’s a “great way of supporting the industry. It provides a restaurant or hotel with income, which would give us the ability to cover the costs of the business whilst things are difficult.”

Restaurants offering vouchers include Kahani in Belgravia; SIX Brasserie in Cambridge (“vouchers van make a huge difference, says executive chef Bart Swiacki); Murano and Cafe Murano in London; Le Comptoir Robuchon in Mayfair; The Laughing Heart and the Aqua Group.

While there are concerns about the implications of a voucher's use should a restaurant go out of business, the best thing is to speak to the restaurant directly and discuss options.

James Duke-Evans of The Beast of Brixton, a bar, restaurant and pub in the capital, was supposed to be celebrating the venue’s fifth birthday this week. Trade has “bottomed out in what would be our peak months”, he says, but Duke-Evans is selling vouchers for supper club parties to be held once the outbreak is over. “When these parties go ahead they’ll be a celebration that we can prevail over this thing,” he says.

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