Here’s What Happened in the London Restaurant World Last Week

Attention turns to reopening measures, while Deliveroo comes under increasing pressure

by James Hansen@jameskhansen Updated Mar 29, 2021, 8:39am BST

A Deliveroo rider cycles through central London — Deliveroo’s reliance on restricting workers’ rights to keep labour costs down is under increasing pressure as its IPO approaches

With Boris Johnson’s coronavirus lockdown reopening roadmap and Rishi Sunak’s Budget under their belts for better or for worse, the last few weeks have seen restaurants prepare for 12 April and 17 May — when outdoor and indoor dining resume, respectively.

The reopening date has now turned to vaccination, and whether or not pubs and restaurants will ask to see vaccine passports. Prime minister Boris Johnson hinted that pubs and restaurants would decide their own policies, which is good because they all hate his.

The Covid-19 has roundly devastated restaurants, pubs, cafes, and bars. But someone that benefited from it was Deliveroo, the food delivery company set to float on the London Stock Exchange for around £8.8 billion. But its investment promises — and profit margins — are heavily reliant on a lack of workers’ rights, as it tacitly admitted in its investor prospectus this week.

Also this week, a report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism found that Deliveroo riders can earn as little as £2 an hour.

When reopening comes, the government wants restaurants to find it easy to open outdoor spaces, so rules on planning permission have been relaxed for the summer.

And when indoor reopening comes, there will be new restaurants ready to roll. Japanese noodle monolith Marugame Udon is arriving in Liverpool Street; fried chicken juggernaut Popeyes is eyeing a London debut; and the former home of Mayfair institution The Square will be taken over by SeaSons, which declares: “we are fish.” This is not a Shape of Water situation. It just loves fish.

The impact of Brexit has been largely deferred by Covid-19, but new export data for January 2021 shows that chocolate and cheese trade to Europe is beginning to melt away.

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Dining guides for staying in this weekend...

How to ship a taste of London’s restaurants nationwide, with kits including suya, udon, and some world-famous butter chicken.
And here are some condiments to put on them, or indeed anything else.
The pop-ups and chef projects to order from right now. Borek! Pizza! Bagels!
Sunday roasts and Mother’s Day kits.
The most exciting places for takeaway and delivery right now.
Order from London’s best restaurants without the apps.
Champion chicken wings, for takeaway or delivery.
The best restaurants for delivery and takeaway.
The best meal kits from London restaurants.
What London’s standout 38 restaurants are doing right now.
Where to find fish and chips for the weekly ritual.
Some top sushi for takeaway.
The best bakeries in London for takeaway pastries and bread.
10 brilliant burgers for lockdown.

And where to order takeaway and delivery in...

And finally...

Where to buy produce, meat, fish, pantry items, wine, and beer.
Some gear to make great coffee at home.
And some gear to wear: tees, totes, mugs. #Gear

Until next week, eat well and be safe.